''Bobbili Brahmanna'' is a 1984
Telugu-language action drama film directed by
K. Raghavendra Rao. It was produced by U. Suryanarayana Raju for the studio Gopi Krishna Movies. The film stars
Krishnam Raju,
Sharada, and
Jayasudha as lead actors, and is scored by
K. Chakravarthy. The film was blockbuster hit at the box office. The film won three
Nandi Awards
The Nandi Awards are annual awards presented by the Government of Andhra Pradesh to recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, theatre, and television, as well as lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. The awards are named after the monolithic ...
and one
Filmfare Award South.
Plot
Brahmanna is the head of
Kotipalli, a village which does not have the police force. He is a descendant of the Bobbili clan, through which he has gained the role of a mediator between people in the village. He makes impartial judgements before the table of justice—a massive tree trunk adorned with a sacred sword.
Brahmanna's younger brother, Ravi, falls in love with a woman named Kasturi. One day, a man named Bullebbayi
rapes Kasturi's older sister, Swaraiyam, in a graveyard. Ravi intercedes and saves Swaraiyim. He brings her to the table of justice. Brahmanna decides that Bellebbayi should marry Swaraiyam. Bellebbayi's father, Rayudu, is plotting to occupy the chair of the village head. Later, Rayudu performs a dangerous
abortion
Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
on his now-pregnant daughter-in-law. Rayudu also starts a rumor that Brahmanna is having an
affair
An affair is a relationship typically between two people, one or both of whom are either married or in a long-term Monogamy, monogamous or emotionally-exclusive relationship with someone else. The affair can be solely sexual, solely physical or ...
with a woman named Susheela and that he sleeps in her hut on the outskirts of the village. Brahmanna reveals that Susheela is the widow of a man he wrongfully condemned to death, and he is now looking after her out of remorse.
Brahmanna's daughter, Rajeswari, falls in love with Susheela's son, Rambabu. Brahmanna agrees to the couple's marriage. Rajeswari goes to play with a swing in a fit of happiness. Rayudu causes Rajeswari to fall from the swing. She falls on a man, and Rayudu claims that the impact blinded that man. Brahmanna's tries to do justice even if the perpetrator is his family member, and he decides that Rajeswari now must marry the blind man to do penance. Ignoring this judgment, Ravi performs a secret marriage between Rajeswari and Rambabu. In anger, Brahmanna expels Ravi from the village. Susheela finds out Rayudu's plan to overthrow Brahmanna. She informs Brahmanna of this, and he slays Rayudu with the sword from the table of justice. Ending the village's autonomy, the film ends with the police arriving and arresting Brahmanna for Rayudu's murder.
Cast
Awards
;
Filmfare Awards
The Filmfare Awards are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Indian cinema.Al The Filmfare ceremony is one of the most famous film events in India. The awards were introduced by Filmfare magazine of The Times G ...
*
Best Actor -
Krishnam Raju
;
Nandi Awards
The Nandi Awards are annual awards presented by the Government of Andhra Pradesh to recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, theatre, and television, as well as lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. The awards are named after the monolithic ...
- 1984
[(in Telugu)]
*
Best Actor - Krishnam Raju
*
Best Supporting Actress -
Sharada
*
Best Director -
K. Raghavendra Rao
Remake
Krishnam Raju remade the film in
Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
as
Dharm Adhikari under Gopi Krishna Movies in 1986 starring
Dilip Kumar,
Jeetendra, and
Sridevi. In ''Bobbili Brahmanna'', Krishnam Raju played both the lead roles, but in ''Dharm Adhikari'', the two roles are played by Dilip Kumar and Jeetendra. It was also remade in Kannada as
Dharma Peeta, starring
Shrinath and
Shashikumar in lead roles.
Legacy
The film's concept of a hero judging others' problems in his village became very popular. Later, the formula was used in ''
Cheran Pandiyan'' (1991) (Tamil film, remade in Telugu as ''
Balarama Krishnulu'' in 1992), ''
Chinna Gounder'' (1992) (Tamil film, remade in Telugu as ''
Chinarayudu'' in 1992), ''
Bobbili Simham'' (1994), ''
Nattamai'' (1994) (Tamil film, remade in Telugu as ''
Pedarayudu'' in 1995), ''Kondapalli Rattaiah'' (1995) and ''Kondaveeti Simhasanam'' (2002).
References
External links
*
{{Krishnam Raju
1984 films
1980s Telugu-language films
1980s Indian films
Films directed by K. Raghavendra Rao
Films produced by Krishnam Raju
Films scored by K. Chakravarthy
Indian action drama films
1980s action drama films
Telugu films remade in other languages
Films with screenplays by the Paruchuri brothers