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Virupaksha (film)

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Virupaksha
Theatrical release poster
Directed byKarthik Varma Dandu
Screenplay bySukumar
Story byKarthik Varma Dandu
Dialogues by
  • Krishna Hari
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyShamdat Sainudeen
Edited byNavin Nooli
Music byB. Ajaneesh Loknath
Production
companies
Release date
  • 21 April 2023 (2023-04-21)
Running time
146 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu
Budget₹40 crore
Box officeest.₹103 crore[2]

Virupaksha (transl. A form of Siva) is a 2023 Indian Telugu-language horror thriller film[1] directed by Karthik Varma Dandu who co-wrote the film with Sukumar. The film was produced by B. V. S. N. Prasad and Sukumar through Sri Venkateswara Cine Chitra and Sukumar Writings respectively. It features Sai Dharam Tej, Samyuktha, Sunil, Rajeev Kanakala, Brahmaji, Ajay and Ravi Krishna.

Virupaksha was released on 21 April 2023 and received generally positive reviews from critics.[3] The film became a commercial success at the box office.

Plot

[edit]

In 1979, in the village of Rudravanam, Venkata Chalapathy and his wife are lynched by the villagers who believe their eerie rituals (black magic) caused multiple deaths. As she dies, Chalapathy's wife curses the village with destruction in twelve years. Their son, Bhairava, is spared and sent to an orphanage by the village head, Harishchandra Prasad.

In 1991, a week after the mysterious disappearance of a villager named Siddhayya, Anasuyamma returns to Rudravanam with her son, Surya, and nephew to donate land for a school and attend the annual carnival honouring Goddess Modamamba. Surya's encounter with Nandini, Harishchandra Prasad's daughter, results in love and she apparently reciprocates but hesitates to accept his proposal. During the festival, Siddhayya, who has developed a severe pox after being mauled by a supernatural crow, returns to the village temple and dies in the inner sanctum, which is considered sacrilege.

The head priest declares that the village is desecrated and must be sealed off for eight days in eight directions. Surya and his family are allowed to leave as they have been away for over twelve years, but Surya reenters the village to deliver medicine to Nandini, who suffers from convulsions, rendering him incapable of leaving the village for eight days.

Sudha, Nandini's friend, tries to elope with her lover Kumar but witnesses his death. When she returns to the village, she is killed by bees. Her parents hide her disappearance to avoid shame. Soon after, the milkman Suri and Surya's cousin Parvathi are found dead under suspicious circumstances. Surya, with the help of an RMP (Registered Medical Practitioner), investigates and discovers that the deaths are connected. Each victim witnesses a death before dying, passing the curse onto the next person.

An Aghora warns the villagers that they made a mistake by imposing the lockdown. Surya finds Sudha's body and uncovers the truth about the chain of deaths. He realizes that Nandini is the next target. As she contemplates suicide, Surya intervenes and saves her.

Surya learns about Chalapathy's past and suspects Bhairava is behind the killings. The head priest suggests that sacrificing Nandini will end the curse, but Surya sedates her and vows to find a solution. He investigates Bhairava's whereabouts and learns that Bhairava fled the orphanage after paralyzing its founder. With the help of the Aghora, Surya discovers Bhairava’s hideout in a cave, where he finds Bhairava's belongings and the original village edict, which was replaced by a fake one.

Surya deduces that Kumar is actually Bhairava, and someone from the village has been helping him execute the curse. He also realizes that Nandini's sacrifice is a ploy to destroy the village. As Surya races to stop the ritual, superstitious residents of nearby villages block his path, fearing that the curse will spread to their homes. Despite the delay, Surya manages to return, only to find the Rudravanam villagers already possessed and performing the ritual.

Surya suspects Harishchandra Prasad is involved but learns that Nandini is actually Chalapathy's daughter, whose identity was hidden by Prasad. Confronting Nandini, Surya discovers that she, along with Bhairava, has been seeking revenge on the village for wrongfully accusing her father of black magic. Nandini reveals that Chalapathy was an Atharvana Veda practitioner who was trying to cure his paralyzed wife, but the villagers misunderstood his practices.

Nandini refuses to stop the ritual, but Surya reminds her of their love. Bound by a talisman that prevents her from harming him, she hints that he must kill her to stop the curse. With great reluctance, Surya stabs Nandini, ending the curse and saving the village.

After Nandini’s cremation, Surya urges the villagers to abandon their superstitions and transform Chalapathy's house into a school. As he holds the talisman, his eyes glow with a supernatural light, hinting at a possible sequel.

Cast

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  • Sai Dharam Tej as Surya
  • Samyuktha as Nandini
  • Sunil as Abbai Raju, a villager
  • Rajeev Kanakala as Harishchandra Prasad, Nandini's adoptive father
  • Brahmaji as RMP Doctor Koti
  • Ravi Krishna as Bhairava Kumar alias Kumar
    • Master Roshan as young Bhairava
  • Abhinav Gomatam as Surya's cousin
  • Kamal Kamaraju as Venkata Chalapathy, Nandini's biological father
  • Kamakshi Bhaskarla as Venkata Chalapathy's wife
  • Sai Chand as the head priest
  • Ajay as Aghora
  • Soniya Singh as Sudha
  • Niharika as Anasuyamma
  • Rajasekhar Aningi as Orphanage's caretaker
  • Meka Sivaramakrishna as Orphanage's founder
  • Shyamala as Parvati
  • Chatrapathi Sekhar as Shivayya, Parvati's husband
  • Bhel Prasad as Sathayya, Sudha’s father
  • Naveen Neni as Upparam, Sudha’s brother-in-law
  • Mahesh Achanta as Sastry, the RMP's acquaintance from neighboring village

Production

[edit]

The exteriors and the streets of the fictional Rudravanam village were shot in and around Araku and Paderu in erstwhile Visakhapatnam district, where Karthik Varma also wrote the script.[4][5] The haunted house and sarpanch's house were sets built in Hyderabad.[5]

Themes

[edit]

Karthik Varma Dandu being a fan of the horror genre was prompted to make an out-and-out horror film amid the trend of horror-comedies, after he read a newspaper article about a Gujarati woman being stoned to death by people who suspected her of being a witch and doing black magic on villagers. Feeling she could have easily killed her killers instead, had she really known black magic, Dandu decided to write the film's story where, according to him, no ghost exists but its presence can be constantly felt.[6]

According to Sai Dharam Tej, the film which takes place from 1979 to 1991, is more about the mystery behind deaths in a village than the horror element.[7] Samyuktha has described the film as a "mystical thriller" and not a horror film.[8]

Music

[edit]
Virupaksha
Soundtrack album by
B. Ajaneesh Loknath
Released22 April 2023 (2023-04-22)
Recorded2022–2023
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length12:15
LanguageTelugu
LabelSony Music India
B. Ajaneesh Loknath chronology
Raghavendra Stores
(2023) 		Virupaksha
(2023) 		Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare
(2023)
Singles from Virupaksha
  1. "Nachavule Nachavule"
    Released: 24 March 2023
  2. "Kalallo"
    Released: 17 April 2023
External audio
audio icon Audio Jukebox on YouTube

The film score and soundtrack is composed by B. Ajaneesh Loknath. The first song "Nachavule Nachavule" was released on 24 March 2023,[9] while the second song "Kalallo" was released on 17 April 2023.[10]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Nachavule Nachavule"Krishna KanthKarthik3:42
2."Kalallo"Ananta SriramAnurag Kulkarni, Madhushree3:44
3."Ragile Jwaale"Krishna KanthB. Ajaneesh Loknath4:49
Total length:12:15

Release

[edit]

The film had a theatrical release on 21 April 2023 in Telugu. The film was dubbed and theatrically released in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam languages on 5 May 2023.[11] The digital and satellite rights of the film were acquired by Netflix and Star Maa respectively.[12] The film premiered on 21 May 2023 on Netflix.[13] It premiered on television on 25 June 2023 on Star Maa.[14]

Reception

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Virupaksha received positive reviews from critics.[15] Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of The Hindu praised the story and work by Karthik Varma Dandu. She further praised the production design, editing and cinematography done by Srinagendra Tangala, Navin Nooli and Shamdat Sainudeen.[16] Raghu Bandi of The Indian Express also praised the direction, and story written by Karthik Varma Dandu along with performances of lead actors, particularly Samyuktha Menon's.[17] Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India wrote "Virupaksha is a well-crafted film – the kind that makes you look at the characters beyond the actors because the film has a suffocating atmosphere that'll draw you in."[18]

123Telugu gave 3.25 out of 5 stars and wrote "Virupaksha is an engaging mystical thriller that is high on technical values. A good storyline, commendable performances by the actors, pulse-pounding sound effects, and neat direction are its trump cards. Barring the slightly slow second half, this movie very much deserves a theatrical experience for its incredible technical values."[15] Latha Srinivasan of India Today gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote "While the climax of the film may appeal to some and not to others, the film focuses on superstitions which some people in the country still believe in. It should be food for thought. On the whole, the film is a good entertainer."[19] The Hans India wrote that story, screenplay, sound design and performance of lead actors, are the major positives of the film.[20]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Virupaksha". British Board of Film Classification. 19 April 2023. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  2. ^ "Virupaksha box office closing collections". News18 Telugu (in Telugu). 6 June 2023.
  3. ^ "Virupaksha movie review: Sai Dharam Tej-starrer supernatural thriller delivers". The New Indian Express. 21 April 2023.
  4. ^ Goud, Nagaraj (20 April 2023). "Director Karthik Dandu interview about Virupaksha". Idlebrain.com. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
  5. ^ a b Ram Venkar Srikar (27 April 2023). "Sukumar Sir Told Me That My Imagination Was Too Creepy: Karthik Dandu on Crafting Virupaksha". Film Companion. Archived from the original on 30 April 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2023 – via Ghostarchive.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ^ "Interview : Virupaksha director Karthik Dandu – I went into coma when Sai Tej met with bike accident". 123Telugu.com. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  7. ^ "Interview : Sai Dharam Tej – Virupaksha means an eye that doesn't have a form". 123Telugu.com. Retrieved 19 April 2023. Virupaksha is set during 1989 -1991. The story happens in a village where mysterious deaths take place. How the mystery unravels is what the film is about. More than the horror element, it is about the mystery.
  8. ^ "Interview : Samyukta Menon – In Virupaksha, I play a village belle who has a lot of attitude". 123Telugu.com. Retrieved 18 April 2023. It is a mystical thriller. It's not a horror film, but people might feel scared.
  9. ^ Kota, Naresh (24 March 2023). "Virupaksha Song Nachavule Nachavule video is out now!". NTV. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  10. ^ "Virupaksha Kallalo song released". Vaartha. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  11. ^ "Virupaksha is releasing tomorrow in Hindi, Tamil, and Malayalam". Telangana Today. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  12. ^ Srivastav, Simran (9 May 2023). "Virupaksha: OTT Rights Of Sai Dharam Tej's Horror Thriller Sold To THIS Streaming Platform". English Jagran. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  13. ^ Goud, Priyanka (16 May 2023). "Virupaksha OTT Release Date: When and where to watch Sai Dharam Tej-Samyuktha's film". Pinkvilla. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  14. ^ "Sai Dharam Tej-starrer Virupaksha To Have Its World TV Premier On This Date". News18. 19 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  15. ^ a b "Virupaksha Telugu Movie Review". 123Telugu. 21 April 2023. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  16. ^ Dundoo, Sangeetha Devi (21 April 2023). "'Virupaksha' movie review: Sai Dharam Tej and Samyuktha Menon's film invokes fear without the gimmicks". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  17. ^ Bandi, Raghu (21 April 2023). "Virupaksha movie review: Sai Dharam Tej-starrer supernatural thriller delivers". The Indian Express. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  18. ^ Nyayapati, Neeshita (22 April 2023). "Virupaksha Movie Review: A gripping horror film". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  19. ^ Srinivasan, Latha (22 April 2023). "Virupaksha Movie Review: Sai Dharam Tej shines in this compelling supernatural horror flick". India Today. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
  20. ^ "Virupaksha Movie review: An honest attempt in a new genre". The Hans India. 21 April 2023. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
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