Zombie Reddy

Zombie Reddy is a 2021 Indian Telugu-language action zombie comedy film directed by Prasanth Varma, and stars Teja Sajja, Anandhi, and Daksha Nagarkar. Produced by Apple Trees Studios, the film is marketed as the first zombie film in Telugu cinema.[2] Set in the district of Kurnool, the film is partially based on COVID-19 pandemic.[3] The film was released on 5 February 2021.[4][5] following its acquisition on Aha it premiered on 26 March 2021.[6]

Zombie Reddy
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPrasanth Varma
Screenplay byScriptsville
Story byPrasanth Varma
Produced byRaj Sekhar Varma
Starring
CinematographyAnith Madadi
Edited bySai Babu
Music byMark K. Robin
Production
company
Apple Trees Studios
Distributed byGeetha Arts
Siily Monks
Release date
  • 5 February 2021 (2021-02-05)
Running time
125 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu
Budget₹4 crore[1]
Box officeest. ₹10.33 crore[1]

Plot

Mario is a game designer from Hyderabad. He develops a game along with his friends Bhadram and Maggie, and although it's a success, they later discover a bug that causes the game to crash at higher levels. Mario calls his friend Kalyan, the programmer, but Kalyan tells them that he is getting married. He invites them to Kurnool district for his wedding, promising to fix the code.

Kalyan's father-in-law Bhooma Reddy is a chieftain who rules the village of Rudravaram. He plans hides his violent ways and weapons until Kalyan is married off to his daughter, Pushkala. Meanwhile, Nandini Reddy, the daughter of Bhooma's close aid Bukka Reddy, also arrives at the wedding. As Mario and his friends drive to Rudravaram, they accidentally hit a man on the road who bites Bhadram. An old man immediately arrives and takes him away. Further on their trip, the trio run into Veera Reddy, Bhooma's arch-rival, who tries to kill them. They escape. Mario finds out Veera Reddy plans to kill Kalyan after his marriage. Despite multiple warnings, Kalyan doesn't believe Mario.

Meanwhile, Bhadram's condition begins to worsen as he transforms into a zombie. He bites a household maid, who in turn bites a laborer, spreading the zombie virus even further. Bhooma Reddy and his men leave to investigate the virus. Mario's efforts to stop Kalyan's marriage are all foiled by Nandini, and in the end, he witnesses Veera Reddy's men kidnapping Kalyan on his wedding night. He finds Nandini and the two begin to quarrel until they both witness a zombie attack on one of Bhooma's workers. They lock themselves in the house along with Maggie and Kasi Reddy, and manage to escape by tricking the zombies.

The group try to rescue Kalyan from Veera Reddy's house, where it is revealed that Nandini is actually Sailaja Reddy, Veera Reddy's daughter, who was sent as a spy. The group manage to escape with Kalyan, and Veera Reddy and Sailaja follow. When Veera Reddy is attacked and swarmed by a crowd of zombies, a grief-filled Sailaja joins forces with Mario. In the fight that follows, Kasi is trapped up palm tree, and Maggie is bitten because she was unable to shoot her friend Bhadram. A heartbroken Mario is forced to flee.

Mario remembers Bhadram getting bit on the road and decides to confront the old man from earlier. They find the original zombie, trapped in a glass cage along with a hidden lab. The old man reveals that he was once a world-famous virologist but the government banned him, citing his practices as unethical and inhumane. Desperate to recover his former reputation, he began developing a vaccine for Covid-19 and tested it directly on humans, leading to the creation of the zombie virus. The old man tries to show Mario the location of the cure in his camera, but the caged zombie breaks free, killing the old man. The others are rescued by Bhooma Reddy. Mario manages to see that the cure is near a symbol in a temple

On their way to the temple, Sailaja realizes she was scratched by the original zombie, but Mario brings her inside despite her protests. While searching for the symbol, they come upon Veera Reddy, who's alive. Although Bhooma Reddy and Veera Reddy are initially furious, they eventually decide to forget their enmity and join hands to hold off the zombie while the others continue looking for the symbol.

When Sailaja begins to turn into a zombie, Mario accidentally discovers that the cure is in the water falling from the Shiva Lingam, which is where the Symbol is. Mario blows a conch to make the zombies chase him, and jumps into a pond fed by the same water. As the zombies follow him into the water, they are cured. Mario is hailed as a hero for stopping the virus as both the families, a cured Maggie and Bhadram joyfully re-unite.

Cast

Production

The film was officially announced on 8 August 2020 by releasing a motion poster of the film.[7][8][9] The film is Prasanth's third film after Awe and Kalki.[10] The music is composed by Mark K. Robin who is known for his works in 2019 film Agent Sai Srinivasa Athreya.[11] The film is Sajja Teja's debut film as a lead actor.[12][13]

Soundtrack

Zombie Reddy
Soundtrack album by
Mark K. Robin
ReleasedFebruary 5, 2021 (2021-02-05) (Jukebox)
Recorded2020-2021
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length15:48
LanguageTelugu
LabelAditya Music
ProducerMark K. Robin
External audio
audio icon Audio Jukebox on YouTube

All music is composed by Mark K. Robin

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."GO Corona" (Chorus : PVNS Rohit, Hymath, Harika Narayan, Sahithi Chagunti, Sony Komanduri)Mama SinghMama Sing, Sri Krishna, Anudeep2:45
2."Zombie Reddy Theme" (Chorus : Anudeep Dev, PVNS Rohit, Raghuram Dronavajjala)Mama SinghMama Singh2:25
3."Burn down"Harika NarayanHarika Narayan 
4."Game of Life"Mama SinghTharun Jain, Manmohan Raj, Mark K. Robin 
5."Natu Kodi"NagendharaMark K. Robin 
6."Mruthyunjaya"Shiva Shakthi DathaKaala Bhairava 
Total length:15:48

IndiaGlitz stated about "GO Corona" single that "This song is 2020 in a nutshell. The rap draws material from some of the most popular memes of the year when the pandemic played havoc. The very title of the song is drawn from a notoriously funny slogan that a political leader gave. And there is a smattering of meme-worthy stuff like 'Aipayee', which was triggered by a spiritual sermon. Modi's call for lighting diyas and clapping for COVID warriors also gets a comical interpretation. The rap is enjoyable, while the singers immerse do their job well. Sri Krishna, Anudeep Dev, PVNS Rohit, and Hymath are the chorus singers. The female ones are Harika Narayan, Sahithi Chagunti, and Sony Komanduri."[14]

Release

The film was released on 5 Feb 2021. It collected a gross of 2.26 crore (equivalent to 2.5 crore or US$320,000 in 2023) on its first day of release.[15]

Home media

The digital rights of the film were acquired by Aha, while the satellite rights were purchased by Star Maa. It was premiered on 28 March 2021, and registered an average TRP rating of 9.72.

Reception

Critical response

Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of The Hindu wrote that "In one stroke, director Prasanth Varma juxtaposes different worlds — a pandemic looming large, zombies, Rayalaseema faction rivalry — to hilarious effect. Zombie Reddy is a satirical potpourri replete with pop culture references at every turn."[16]

Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India stated "Zombie Reddy does have its moments, and all the cast, including Teja, Anandhi and Daksha, seem to have fun with what they're offered. This is not a bad film by any means, if only Prasanth had not gone down the predictable route, it would've been something more."[17] Hemanth Kumar from Firstpost gave 3 out of 5 stars and stated "Zombie Reddy is the first zombie film in Telugu cinema and to its credit, it does a fairly good job in simplifying the storytelling to the bare essentials."[18] A review from The Hans India rated the film 3 stars of 5 and wrote: "Zombie Reddy makes a decent attempt to entertain the audiences."[19]

Box office

The film collected a gross of 2.26 crore (equivalent to 2.5 crore or US$320,000 in 2023) on its first day of release.[15]

Sequel

After the success of the film, a sequel titled Zombie Reddy: Revenge of the Dead is in development.

References

  1. "Zombie Reddy Day 6 Collections: Teja Sajja's Film Roars At Box Office". Sakshi Post. 11 February 2021. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  2. FC, Team (5 December 2020). "Teaser of Prasanth Varma's Zombie Reddy: The First Bite Is Pretty Cool, And Has Corona References Too". Film Companion. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  3. India, The Hans (5 December 2020). "'Zombie Reddy', a fusion Of 'Covid-19' and 'Zombie' themes". www.thehansindia.com. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  4. "Zombie Reddy, Helmed By Prasanth Varma, All Set To Be Released In Theatres On February 5!". in.style.yahoo.com. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  5. "Zombie Reddy postponed to February". Cinema Express. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  6. "Stream Zombie Reddy on Aha Video". Aha. 26 March 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  7. "Prasanth Varma reveals why his next film is titled Zombie Reddy - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  8. "Prasanth Varma's next is 'Zombie Reddy'". The Hindu. 8 August 2020. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  9. "Awe director Prasanth Varma's next, Zombie Reddy". Cinema Express. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  10. "Prasanth Varma's Third Film Is Titled 'Zombie Reddy'!". Sakshi Post. 8 August 2020. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  11. "Prasanth Varma's new film titled Zombie Reddy". Telugu Cinema. 8 August 2020. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  12. "Samantha Akkineni launches the teaser of Prasanth Varma's Zombie Reddy - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  13. "502 Bad Gateway". www.inkvilla.com. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  14. "Zombie Reddy Music review songs lyrics". IndiaGlitz.com. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  15. "Zombie Reddy First Day Box Office Collections". Sakshi Post. 6 February 2021. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  16. Dundoo, Sangeetha Devi (5 February 2021). "'Zombie Reddy' movie review: When the zombies attack Seema". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  17. "Zombie Reddy Movie Review: A desi zombie film complete with factionalism and lots of drama", The Times of India, retrieved 8 February 2021
  18. "Zombie Reddy movie review: Prashant Varma's zombie comedy adds a fun twist to an action-packed family drama". Firstpost. 5 February 2021. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  19. hansindia (5 February 2021). "Zombie Reddy Movie Review & Rating {3/5}". www.thehansindia.com (in Telugu). Retrieved 6 February 2021.
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