Leela Mahal Center[a] is a 2004 Indian Telugu-language action romance directed by Devi Prasad and starring Aryan Rajesh and Sadha. The film is a remake of the 1999 Tamil film Amarkalam.[2]
| Leela Mahal Center | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Devi Prasad |
| Written by | Devi Prasad Vegnesa Satish (dialogues) |
| Story by | Saran |
| Based on | Amarkalam (Tamil) |
| Produced by | CHS Mohan |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Kantheti Shankar |
| Edited by | Nandamuri Hari |
| Music by | S. A. Rajkumar |
Production company | Medha Media |
Release date |
|
Running time | 137 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Telugu |
Plot
editPrabhu has a troubled childhood with divorced parents. His mother marries another man. Upset that he has to call his stepfather as his own father, he leaves his house at a young age. He grows up to be a thug who works at Leela Mahal Center, a cinema theatre. GK, a former Mumbai-based don, who was sent to jail by his own friend, Sudheer. GK tells Prabhu to kidnap Anjali, a violinist. She is initially disturbed by Prabhu and starts to fall in love with him after Singhamalai tells Anjali about Prabhu's past life. A terrorist gang comes to kidnap Anjali as a bargain for their fellow friends in jail. How Prabhu fights the gang and saves Anjali form the rest of the story. It is revealed that Anjali is none other than GK's daughter. GK & Sudheer become friends again.
Cast
edit- Aryan Rajesh as Prabhu[3]
- Sadha as Anjali[3]
- Atul Kulkarni as GK[3]
- Suman as Sudheer[3]
- Brahmanandam as Singhamalai, Prabhu's right-hand man[2]
- Dharmavarapu Subramanyam as Leela Mahal Center's manager[2]
- Surya[3]
- Krishna Bhagawan as Bujji[2]
- Raghu Babu[2]
- M. S. Narayana[2]
- Sheeba[2]
- Pragathi as Sudheer's wife[2]
- Surekha Vani as Prabhu's mother
- Sameer Hasan as Prabhu's father
- Karate Kalyani as Manga[2]
- Prudhvi Raj as Terrorist
- Hema as GK's wife
- Robert (cameo in song "Balamanemo")
Production
editThe film is directed by Devi Prasad, who previously directed Aaduthu Paaduthu.[2] The film got stuck in production before ultimately releasing in 2004.[2] Aryan Rajesh, who plays the lead in the film was yet to reach the limelight prior to the film's release due to the box office failures of his previous films.[4] In 2004 prior to the release of Donga Dongadi, Sadha, who starred in Jayam, was yet to bag stardom in the Telugu film industry.[5]
Soundtrack
edit| Leela Mahal Center | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 2004 | |||
| Recorded | 2004 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 21:51 | |||
| Language | Telugu | |||
| Label | Surya Music | |||
| Producer | S. A. Rajkumar | |||
| S. A. Rajkumar chronology | ||||
| ||||
The songs are composed by S. A. Rajkumar.[2] The songs "Babuji Zara Dheere Chalo" from Dum and "Mabbe Masakesindile" from Vayasu Pilichindi were combined for the song "Palamalaimu".[2] The lyrics were written by Suddala Ashokteja, Sai Sriharsha, and I.S. Murthy.[1] The song "Thummeda Rekkalanadugu" rendered by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam is based on the Telugu poem of the same name.[1] In a review of the film's soundtrack, a critic from The Hindu stated that "A well-crafted (combined) effort by the composers and the lyricists ... gives music-loving Telugus some good compositions."[1] The song "O Hampy Bomma" is based on "Sangeetha Vanil" from Chinna Poove Mella Pesu.[citation needed]
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Palamalaimu (Balamanemo)" | Shankar Mahadevan, Malini | 4:18 |
| 2. | "Chitti Chilakamma" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam | 3:04 |
| 3. | "Thummeda" | Udit Narayan, Sujatha | 4:33 |
| 4. | "O Hampy Bomma" | Hariharan, Sujatha | 3:44 |
| 5. | "Chitti Chilakamma (Bit)" | Deepika | 0:59 |
| 6. | "Srimalle Puvvalle" | K. S. Chithra | 4:50 |
| 7. | "Paramapavani" | Kalpana | 0:23 |
| Total length: | 21:51 | ||
Reception and box office
editThe Hindu wrote that "Aryan Rajesh performs the role with ease and Sada looks beautiful. Atul Kulkarni fares well".[3] Idlebrain gave the film a rating of three out of five and wrote that " Devi Prasad should be appreciated for making a decent film in spite of undue delays and obstacles that dogged the progress of this film".[2]
Unlike Rajesh's previous films, this film was a success at the box office.[6]
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d "Chords & Notes". The Hindu. 26 July 2004.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Leela Mahal Center - Telugu cinema Review - Aryan Rajesh, Sadaf - Devi Prasad". www.idlebrain.com.
- ^ a b c d e f "Gun power to love power - LIFE - The Hindu". The Hindu. 4 December 2004. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020.
- ^ Kumar, G. Manjula (20 July 2004). "Waiting for his turn". The Hindu. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
- ^ "Future tense". The Hindu. 27 July 2004.
- ^ "Back on track". The Hindu. 13 December 2004.