Vijayam
Vijayam (transl. Victory) is a 2003 Indian Telugu-language social problem film directed by Singeetam Srinivasa Rao and produced by D. Ramanaidu. The film stars Raja and Gajala. It was released on 9 May 2003.
| Vijayam | |
|---|---|
 Poster | |
| Directed by | Singeetam Srinivasa Rao |
| Written by | Satyanand (dialogues) |
| Screenplay by | Singeetam Srinivasa Rao |
| Story by | Singeetam Srinivasa Rao |
| Produced by | D. Ramanaidu |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Hari Anumolu |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Koti |
Production company | |
Release date |
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| Country | India |
| Language | Telugu |
Plot
Raja is a tribal man who studies in Visakhapatnam and does well in school. On the other hand, Usha is the daughter of a rich businessman. Raja falls in love with Usha, but due to some miscommunication, Usha thinks that Raja is rich akin to her family. When Usha finds out that Raja is a tribal man, she becomes heartbroken. How Raja convinces Usha forms the rest of the story.
Cast
- Raja as Raja alias Raju
- Gajala as Usha
- Giri Babu as Usha's father
- Murali Mohan as a forest officer
- Sunil as Srinivas alias Siddu
- Rajeev Kanakala as Usha's brother
- Dharmavarapu as the hotel manager
- Srinivasa Reddy as Raju's friend
- Suman Setty as Raju's classmate
- AVS as H. Umapathi
- Brahmanandam as Vanari
Production
Vijayam was directed by Singeetam Srinivasa Rao (who also wrote the story and screenplay, while the dialogues were written by Satyanand) and produced by D. Ramanaidu under Suresh Productions. Cinematography was handled by Hari Anumolu, and editing by the duo Krishnareddy–Madhava.[1][2] Gajala was cast after Rao saw her performing in a show; she accepted the offer as Rao was the director of her favourite film Pushpaka Vimana (1987).[3]
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed by Koti.[4]
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Ee Ooji Sunoji" | Mano | 4:09 |
| 2. | "Nijamena Nijamena" | Karthik, Shreya Ghoshal | 4:35 |
| 3. | "Kusalama" | Rajesh, K. S. Chithra | 4:09 |
| 4. | "Netho Nindu" | Tippu, Shreya Ghoshal | 4:09 |
| 5. | "Meghala Pallaki" | Tippu, Sunitha | 4:31 |
| 6. | "Endhuko Premalo" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Richi | 5:20 |
| 7. | "Hampilo Silpalu" | Rajesh | 4:14 |
Release and reception
Vijayam was released on 9 May 2003.[1] Vijayalaxmi of Rediff.com wrote, "It is embarrassing when any filmmaker picks up a bad narrative and packs his movie with lewd comedy in the name of entertainment. But when that director is a man of the stature of Singeetham Srinivasa Rao, it is even more shocking."[5] Sify wrote, "The major drawback of Vijayam is that the basic story has not been handled well and it is better that Singeetam goes back to comedies!"[6] Gudipoodi Srihari of The Hindu wrote, "Raja is at ease in most of the scenes. [Gajala] is quite cute. Muralimohan and Giribabu make their presence felt. The film is musically competent with well-scored numbers like Kusalama O Priya and Yenduko Premalo composed by Koti."[7] Jeevi of Idlebrain.com rated the film 2.75 out of 5, calling it "Oldwine with youth label".[1]
Controversy
The film involves a scene with AVS and Brahmanandam, which Priya Richi of The News Minute condemned for passing queerness as comedy. She lamented that this was an example of poor representation of the LGBT community in Telugu cinema.[8]
References
- "Movie review — Vijayam". Idlebrain.com. Archived from the original on 4 October 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- Krishnamoorthy, Suresh (27 March 2003). "Teaming up for Vijayam". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
- "Gazala scripts her way to Vijayam". The Times of India. 8 May 2003. Archived from the original on 19 May 2020. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
- "Vijayam". Gaana. Archived from the original on 15 July 2020. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- Vijayalaxmi (14 May 2003). "'Vijayam' looks set for defeat". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 10 December 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- "Vijayam". Sify. 14 May 2003. Archived from the original on 19 May 2020. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- Srihari, Gudipoodi (12 May 2003). "Message-oriented film". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 19 May 2020. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
- Richi, Priya (12 July 2019). "How Tollywood has demonised queerness by passing off offensive depiction as 'comedy'". The News Minute. Archived from the original on 6 August 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2022.