A SWEET 20 TO ‘MAJOR CHANDRAKANTH’…
“Yenduku kattalira sistu???” roared Veerapandya Kattabommana… And the British cellars lodged with water! Not many alive would have seen the legendary freedom fighter Kattabommana. But, we know he would be like NTR! We hear great stories about such immortal souls, but the only one in the history of Telugu cinema to relive all such epic characters is none other than Viswavikhyatha Natasaarvabhouma Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao, our Andhra idol “Anna garu”. One such film which can still make our blood vessels pump with patriotism is MAJOR CHANDRAKANTH! This timeless film turns 20 years this 23/04/2013, which is etched in our legacy of Telugu cinema having released on the same day 20yrs back!
This film being reportedly the last appearance of NTR on the celluloid is a classic dedicated on his name to Telugu cinema. “Punyabhoomi naa desam Namo namaami” is the song that strikes our memory when we talk about the film. Such is the imprint of the song – be it the fantabulous rendition of S.P. Balasubramanyam, the composition by M.M. Keeravani, the stellar performance by the iconic actor NTR or the making of the song, the perfect ingredients to make it eternal.
Besides just the song, the film stands a testament to the patriotism of the great leader NTR, his urge to give his society something back through the medium he knows i.e., cinema!
To have a star like NTR and write a script for such an iconic figure is no new job to the revered writers Paruchuri Brothers, but they have delivered a splendor which makes it a commercial classic. That defines their pen!
Tunes like “Neekkavalasindi…” have indeed inspired NTR to tap a foot. And it’s absolutely a ‘butter fed education’ to the ace composer Keeravani. Mohan Babu essaying the character of NTR with fanboy worship is a forget-not moment to him! Ramyakrishna, Nagma and our beloved ‘Mogambo’ Amrish Puri and others have made this high-voltage film look so endearing on the screen. This film has Manoj Manchu [the youngest son of Mohan Babu] featuring as the child artist. The lens of Ajay Vincent [the cinematographer] needs special mention as it has captured the big man NTR to the fullest.
And not to forget the entire crew of ‘Major Chandrakanth’ who gifted us an antique! This film which has been produced under Sri Lakshmi Prasanna Pictures was released on 23rd April, 1993 adorns a silver jubilee run at the box-office.
Thanks to the iconic actor who felt the responsibility of entertaining his fans even at his 70s, to the Producer Mohan Babu for materializing a distinguished project like this and last but not the least, the captain of the cruise, maverick director K. Raghavendra Rao, who is a master at blending concept with commerciality!
May this film leave even the viewers of coming generations at awe and travel with time till the word ‘cinema' lasts…
