Sridevi, Chiranjeevi and child actors in ‘Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari’
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
On May 9, 2025, production house Vyjayanthi Movies is re-releasing the Chiranjeevi-Sridevi Telugu socio-fantasy drama Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari in 2D and 3D formats in more than 150 screens, to mark its 35th anniversary. “We have been working on restoring the film for the last few years. My father (producer C Ashwini Dutt) thought it would be apt to re-release it on the anniversary,” says Swapna Dutt, co-producer of Kalki 2898 AD and several noteworthy contemporary Telugu films.
When the film was released on May 9, 1990, a severe cyclone battered undivided Andhra Pradesh. The film drew the audiences gradually and became a blockbuster. It was a game changer for Ashwini Dutt and the production house. The fantasy drama directed by K Raghavendra Rao, with its story by Yandamoori Veerandranath and screenplay by Jandhyala, featured Chiranjeevi as a guardian of four children and Sridevi as the daughter of Lord Indra; she is in quest of her lost ring, without which she cannot return to Indralok.
Chiranjeevi and Sridevi in ‘Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari is the latest film to join the re-release bandwagon. The trend of re-releasing older hits gathered momentum post pandemic, hoping to woo back the audiences to the idea of collective theatrical viewing with a dash of nostalgia.
Once more, on the large screen
Mahesh Babu’s Pokiri directed by Puri Jagannadh, SS Rajamouli’s Simhadri featuring NTR Jr, Pawan Kalyan’s Kushi, the Ravi Teja starrer Venky are a few examples. Several films followed, including director Sukumar and Allu Arjun’s Arya 2, Gowtam Tinnanuri’s sports drama Jersey led by Nani, Nag Ashwin’s Yevade Subramanyam starring Nani and Vijay Deverakonda, Tharun Bhascker’s Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi and Sekhar Kammula’s Happy Days.
For the film teams, it was a chance to regroup and relive memories of making these hits. For the audiences, it was an opportunity to revisit old favourites and even introduce these films to the next generation on a large screen. When Nagarjuna and Sonali Bendre’s 2002 hit Manmadhudu re-released, the cheer in the halls was palpable as Brahmanandam’s famous line ‘they paid no?’ was said in unison.
Sonali Bendre and Nagarjuna in ‘Manmadhudu’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Making these re-releases possible are technical teams that diligently restore and digitise old films. More often than not, old negatives are lost or damaged. Cases in point being Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari and Singeetam Srinivasa Rao’s Aditya 369, the time travel film led by Balakrishna.
Since 2018, Swapna and her sister Priyanka Dutt were on the hunt to find a good print of Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari. Priyanka’s husband, director Nag Ashwin, set a daily reminder on her phone, so that she would relentlessly pursue the search. The production house contacted several theatres in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to see if anyone had an old print of reasonable quality. Some theatres stored prints of old blockbusters as keepsakes. In 2021, a print was sourced from Appa Rao of Vijayawada.
Film restoration
Prasad Laboratories began to work on restoring the film. The reels that had been run on projectors for prolonged periods were weathered with the use of grease and oil. The cleaning process involved removing dust and grease from each frame, followed by scanning for digitisation. The restored film was first digitised in 8K and the images were then converted to 4K format for theatrical projection. Prime Focus oversaw the 3D conversion. “This was challenging since the film was not shot for 3D,” says Swapna.
Ticket bookings for the re-release have been enthusiastic. Those who grew up in the ‘80s and ‘90s are likely to turn up in theatres for a slice of nostalgia. Swapna hopes the younger generation will also warm up to the film. “I am looking forward to introducing the film to my five-year-old daughter. Old films may be available on television or digital platforms for home viewing, but the collective viewing experience is unmatchable.” Vyjayanthi Movies earlier re-released the Chiranjeevi and Sonali Bendre starrer Indra to much fan appeal.
Balakrishna in ‘Aditya 369’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Director Singeetam Srinivasa Rao’s 1991 film Aditya 369 featured Balakrishna in dual roles, including Vijayanagara emperor Sri Krishnadevaraya. Producer Sivalenka Krishna Prasad says about its restoration, “It was an iconic film for our production house, Sridevi Movies, and for Telugu cinema. All the effort that went into digitising the film in 4K with 5.1 sound mix was worth it when we saw the enthusiasm in theatres. We sourced a print (positive) from Vijayawada and worked on the restoration.”
The restored version of Aditya 369 was screened in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, USA, Australia and UK. Krishna Prasad saw it as an opportunity to showcase the film, presented by SP Balasubrahmanyam with dialogues by Jandhyala, to a newer generation. “I doubt if young people will watch these older films at home,” he says, adding, “When I lived in Chennai for a few years, I noticed how there was a culture of older films being screened in a few theatres. That helped people rediscover iconic films. Since we do not have that in the Telugu States, this trend of re-releases can serve to plug the gap.”
Next up is Rajamouli and NTR Jr’s Yama Donga, expected to arrive on May 18. And, the trend is unlikely to fade any time soon. On X, producer Shobu Yarlagadda hinted at the possibility of re-releasing the Baahubali films to mark a decade of Baahubali – The Beginning!
Published – May 07, 2025 08:08 pm IST
