Telugu cinema

Telugu Cinema refers to the Telugu film industry. The industry is the second largest in India in terms of number of movies made in a year and third largest in terms of infrastructure. The state of Andhra Pradesh has the highest number of cinema halls in India. The IMAX theater in Hyderabad has a few world records to its credit. The industry has a few Guinness records for the most films directed by male and female directors, the most number of films produced by a person and also for having the largest film studio in the world..

Industry of Doddi

(1 crore = 10,000,000 rupees, approximately US$ 250,124.68 on Feb 24, 2008.)

The Telugu cinema industry, the Second largest film Industry in India, is based in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India.

Currently, about 150 Telugu films are released every year with approximately 3 productions every week. Just like any other cinema industry, the Telugu film industry produces all genres of cinema. In 2005, the annual turnover reached Rs. 2.3 Billion ($52 Million), with Rs. 700 million coming from the ticket sales itself next only to Hindi and Tamil. Popular movies tend to open during the three festive/holiday seasons of the region: Sankranti, Summer, and Dusshera. In 2004, the industry made around Rs. 1.5 Billion (150 Crores) during the Sankranthi season. There are at least three TV channels that are dedicated exclusively to feature programs related to Telugu movies.

File:GntCinePlex.JPG

A Cineplex at Guntur.

Below is a chart of box office collections of Telugu Film Industry with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.

Year	Telugu Cinema Box Office
1980	819
1985	1,526
1990	3,333
1995	7,985
2000	14,011
2005	23,044

The Telugu film industry accounts for 1% of the gross domestic product of Andhra Pradesh.

History

Early development: 1921-1930

The Telugu film industry originated with the silent film in 1921, with the production of Bhisma Pratighna. The film was directed by Raghupati Venkaiah and his son R.S. Prakash. The two would go on to produce and direct dozens of films throughout the decade, casting theater actors in major roles. They established a long-lasting precedent of focusing exclusively on religious themes; Nandanar, Gajendra Moksham, and Matsyavatar, three of their most famous productions, centered on religious figures, parables, and morals.

Rise of the Talkie: 1931-1947

In 1931, the first Telugu film with audible dialogue, Bhakta Prahlad, was produced by H.M. Reddy. Popularly known as 'talkies', films with sound quickly grew in number and fanbase. In 1934, the industry saw its first major commercial success with Lavakusa. Directed by C. Pullaiah and starring Parupalli Subbarao and Sriranjani in lead roles, the film attracted unprecedented numbers of viewers to theaters and thrust the young film industry into mainstream culture.

By 1936, the mass appeal of film allowed directors to move away from religious and mythological themes. That year, under the direction of Krithiventi Nageswara Rao, Prema Vijayam, a film focusing on social issues, was released. Its success prompted the production of dozens of other immensely successful 'social films', notably 1939's Vandemataram and Malli Pelli. Touching on societal problems like the status of Untouchables and the practice of giving dowry, Telugu films increasingly focused on contemporary living: twenty-nine of the ninety-six films released between 1937 and 1947 had social themes.

The outbreak of World War II and the subsequent resource scarcity caused the British Raj to impose a limit on the use of filmstrip in 1943 to 11,000 feet, a sharp reduction from the 20,000 feet that was common till then. As a result, the number of films produced during the War was substantially lower than in previous years. Nonetheless, prior to the ban, an important shift occurred in the industry: independent studios formed, actors and actresses were signed to contracts limiting who they could work for, and films moved from social themes to folklore legends. 1942's Balanagamma typified these changes: the film featured fantasy elements of cultural lore, was produced by Gemini Studios, and its producers added a restricting clause to the lead actress' contract. By 1947, nearly all films were produced by studios with contracted actors.

Budgets

(1 crore = 10,000,000 rupee, approximately US$250,124.68 on Feb 24, 2008.)

The budgets for Telugu movies typically range between 7-15 crores per film. Pre-lease revenues for popular films can range between 12-20 crores per film and post-release business for these movies can be around 25-40 crores depending on the success of the movie. Popular actors like Megastar Chiranjeevi, Nandamuri Balakrishna, Akkineni Nagarjuna, Venkatesh, Mahesh Babu, Ravi Teja, Pawan Kalyan, and Jr.NTR are some of the highest paid actors in Telugu Cinema. Singers: Telugu film industry has the reputation of producing many singers like Ghantasala and S.P.Bala Subramanyam. S.P.B holds the record singing maximum number of songs (39000 songs approximately)

Fans

Well-known stars of Telugu Cinema have devoted fan followings in the South.Chittor V. Nagaiah, Nandamuri Taraka Ramarao, Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Bhanumati, S. V. Ranga Rao, Savithri, Jamuna, Krishna, Sobhan Babu, Kanta Rao, Vanisri, MEGASTAR Chiranjeevi, Nandamuri Balakrishna, Akkineni Nagarjuna, Venkatesh, Mohan Babu, Jagapati Babu, Pawan Kalyan, Mahesh Babu, Jr.NTR and Prabhas ,Raviteja are very popular and enjoy a significant fan following among the Telugu movie audience.

Trivia

• 80 Telugu films were made in the first five years after the release of Bhakta Prahlada.
• The long-time Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, N. T. Rama Rao, was an alumnus of Telugu Cinema.

Doddi

See also

• List of Telugu films
• Cinema of India
• List of popular Telugu films
• Santosham Film Awards
• Telugu Filmfare Awards
• Nandi Awards
• Filmfare Awards

External links

• raaga.com
• indiaglitz.com
• Telugu Online Radio's
• Telugu Movies @ Oneindia
• Telugu Movie Lyrics
• tollynation.com