Mayabazar

Mayabazar is a 1957 Indian epic fantasy film directed by K. V. Reddy. It was produced by B. Nagi Reddy and Aluri Chakrapani under their banner, Vijaya Vauhini Studios. The film was shot in both Telugu and Tamil with the same title, but with a few differences in the cast. It is considered a landmark in bothTelugu andTamil cinema, with praise for its cast and technical aspects.

About Mayabazar in brief

Summary MayabazarMayabazar is a 1957 Indian epic fantasy film directed by K. V. Reddy. It was produced by B. Nagi Reddy and Aluri Chakrapani under their banner, Vijaya Vauhini Studios. The film was shot in both Telugu and Tamil with the same title, but with a few differences in the cast. The story is an adaptation of the folk tale Sasirekha Parinayam, which in turn is based on the epic Mahabharata. It revolves around the roles of Krishna and Ghatotkacha, as they try to reunite Arjuna’s son Abhimanyu with his love, Balarama’s daughter. The soundtrack features twelve songs, with most of the musical score composed by Ghantasala. Mayabazar became the first Telugu film to be digitally remastered and colourised, at an estimated cost of ₹75 million in late November 2007. The updated version was released on 30 January 2010 in 45 theatres in Andhra Pradesh. A May 2013 CNN-News18 poll selected Mayabazar as the greatest Indian film of all time. The Telugu version of Mayabazer was also dubbed into Kannada. It became a silver-jubilee film and was screened at the Public Gardens in Hyderabad for its 50th anniversary on 7 April 2007. Both were critically and commercially successful, with a theatrical run of 100 days in 24 theatres, and it became aSilver Jubilee film.

It is considered a landmark in bothTelugu andTamil cinema, with praise for its cast and technical aspects, despite the limitations of technology at the time. In addition to the technical crew, 400 studio workers – including light men, carpenters, and painters – participated in the development of the film. Though Rama Rao was initially reluctant to play the lead role, his portrayal of Krishna received acclaim and yielded more offers to reprise the same role in several unrelated films. Four of the songs were composed by S. Rajeswara Rao prior to his unexplained departure from the project. One of them was accompanied by the first illusion of moonlight in Indian cinema, shot by cinematographer Marcus Bartley. In the Tamil version, D. Balasubramaniam, R. R. Ezhumalai, and K. A. Thangavelu played those parts in the Tamil versions. In Telugu, Gummadi, Mukkamala, Ramana Reddy, and Relangi played supporting roles in supporting roles, with D.Balasubramsai playing those roles in the Telugu versions of the two films. In Tamil, the film’s script was written by Venkata Reddy based on Raavi Kondala Rao’s screenplay. The first mythological film produced by their studio, Mayabaza marked a milestone for NagiReddy and Chakrapani.