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''Chantabbai'' () is a 1986 Indian Telugu-language
comedy drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
film directed by
Jandhyala Jandhyala Subrahmanya Sastry (14 January 1951 – 19 June 2001), known mononymously as Jandhyala, was an Indian film director, screenwriter, and playwright known for his work in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre, theatre. Popularly referred to a ...
, starring
Chiranjeevi Konidela Chiranjeevi (born Konidela Sivasankara Varaprasad; 22 August 1955) is an Indian actor, philanthropist and former politician known for his work in Telugu cinema. Known as the "Mega Star", he is widely regarded as one of the most succe ...
and Suhasini, with
Jaggayya Kongara Jaggayya (31 December 1926 – 5 March 2004) was an Indian actor, littérateur, journalist, lyricist, dubbing artist and politician known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He was known as ''Kanchu Kantam Ja ...
and
Mucherla Aruna Mucherla Aruna is an Indian influencer and former actress who worked in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada films, mainly during the 1980s. Early life and career Mucherla Aruna was born in Kothagudem of Telangana into a family that belong ...
in supporting roles. Based on
Malladi Venkata Krishna Murthy Malladi Venkata Krishna Murthy (born 13 November 1949) is an Indian Telugu-language author. He is known for writing thriller plots. Career Murthy wrote many novels and short stories. The film '' Jyothi Lakshmi'' (2015) is based on one of hi ...
's novel of the same name, the film features music composed by K. Chakravarthy. Released on 22 August 1986, ''Chantabbai'' received critical acclaim but was commercially unsuccessful. Despite its initial box office performance, the film later achieved
cult Cults are social groups which have unusual, and often extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Extreme devotion to a particular person, object, or goal is another characteristic often ascribed to cults. The term ...
status and is regarded as a classic in Telugu comedy cinema.


Plot

Panduranga "Pandu" Rao is an amateur detective employed at Universal Detective Agency in
Visakhapatnam Visakhapatnam (; List of renamed places in India, formerly known as Vizagapatam, and also referred to as Vizag, Visakha, and Waltair) is the largest and most populous metropolitan city in the States and union territories of India, Indian stat ...
, which is run and managed by Ramachandra Murthy. He considers
James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
as his idol, and models himself after him in terms of appearance and gives himself the name "James Pond". Neither the police nor his colleagues take Pandu seriously, including his assistant Ganapathi and the local police inspector Saumitri. Pandu harbours feelings for Jwala, a self-employed telephone cleaner. She considers him as a good friend, but does not take his professional abilities seriously. Once, Jwala visits the house of a businessman to clean his telephone, but finds herself holding a hand gun instead of telephone receiver. She is accused of killing the businessman and theft of diamonds he possessed. Pandu takes up the case, but is interrupted by Murthy, who was appointed by the police to help them as a detective. Pandu refuses to give up and continues to investigate unofficially. Meanwhile, Jwala's friend Nischala, a surgeon, arranges her release on bail. As a part of his investigation, Pandu calls Jwala to his office for an interrogation, which goes horribly wrong. However, Pandu gets to know that Jwala spotted a chocolate brown-coloured Maruti car parked outside the businessman's house on the day of murder. He notices Murthy using a similar car and contacting jewellers outside Visakhapatnam. Pandu grows suspicious, and spies on Murthy with Saumitri's help. They eventually catch Murthy confessing his crime to a jeweller and arrest him. Pandu is subsequently appointed as the head of Universal Detective Agency. Upon Jwala's recommendation, Nischala approaches Pandu with a case: to find her missing paternal half-brother who was nicknamed Chantabbai (younger one). Chantabbai was born to Nischala's father Gangadharam and his love interest Sarmishta. Gangadharam was later coerced to marry Nischala's mother, who managed to keep them apart until her demise. With Gangadharam's health deteriorating severely, Nischala wants to bring Chantabbai before him and make him happy. Pandu takes up the case and finds that Gangadharam's friend Ramkoti took care of Sarmistha and Chantabbai for a while. Upon investigating, Pandu learns that Ramkoti had two sons Kalyan and Pattabhi, and favoured the former. Pandu concludes that Kalyan is Gangadharam's son and introduces him to the family. Days later, Pattabhi comes to Gangadharam's house and claims to be Chantabbai. Pandu finds himself challenged with the outcome and tries several ways to deduce the real heir. All of them fail due to several loopholes, but the results of a blood test manipulated by both makes Pandu believe that both of them are fraudsters. Gangadharam expels both from his house, and the brothers swear revenge. Meanwhile, Pandu and Jwala fall in love and plan for their marriage. One day, Pandu learns from Nischala that Chantabbai's aunt Bala has arrived in Visakhapatnam for a family function. Pandu goes to meet Bala and learns that his mother was the Sharmistha whom Gangadharam loved. Realising that he is Chantabbai, Pandu recalls the hardships he faced as a child and how he was ostracized by the society for his illegitimate birth. Pandu refuses to return to Gangadharam's place as his son, unless the share of wealth he would inherit be donated to the orphanage he runs in the city. Nischala agrees to the condition and mediates. Meanwhile, Kalyan and Pattabhi kidnap Pandu and demand ransom from Gangadharam. Pandu sends a letter explaining his plight and requests to save him. However, Ganapathi notices number '1' written on the sheet and starts reading the first letter of each word in the message together; they reveal an instruction to tell the kidnappers that he is not the real heir of Gangadharam. Gangadharam executes the plan, and Pandu leads the brothers to a house. There, they notice Gangadharam playing cards with his friend, and proceed to kidnap him. However, Saumitri enters and arrests the brothers. The film ends with Gangadharam accepting Pandu as his son, and his marriage with Jwala.


Cast


Music

The music of the film was composed by K. Chakravarthy and lyrics written by
Veturi Veturi Sundararama Murthy (29 January 1936 – 22 May 2010), known mononymously by his surname Veturi, was an Indian poet and lyricist who is known for his works in Telugu literature and cinema. Veturi is a recipient of the National Film Award, ...
. Vocals were provided by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, S.P. Sailaja, and P. Suseela.


Reception

Although ''Chantabbai'' did not fare well at the box office upon its release, it later became a cult classic, praised for its humour and Chiranjeevi's comedic performance. Initially, audiences did not embrace the film, as it differed from Chiranjeevi's usual action-hero roles. However, it gained significant popularity in repeat television screenings, where it became a hit. In 2016, Karthik Keramulu of ''Dailyo'' highlighted that the film was a casting coup, with Chiranjeevi—known for his action roles—playing a bumbling private detective in a full-length comedy.


Legacy

The 2024 film '' Srikakulam Sherlock Holmes'' pays homage to ''Chantabbai'' with the tagline "Chantabbai Thaluka" ("Care of Chantabbai").


References


External links

* {{Jandhyala Subramanya Sastry, state=collapsed 1986 films Films directed by Jandhyala Films scored by K. Chakravarthy 1980s Telugu-language films 1980s Indian films Films based on Indian novels 1980s police comedy films 1980s comedy thriller films 1980s crime comedy films 1980s comedy mystery films 1986 crime thriller films Indian comedy thriller films Indian crime comedy films Indian detective films Indian comedy mystery films Indian mystery thriller films Indian crime thriller films 1980s masala films 1986 comedy films