''Dictator'' is a 2016 Indian

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

-language

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

, jointly produced by

Eros International Eros International Media Ltd. (also known as Eros India) is an Indian motion picture production and distribution company, based and originated in Mumbai, India. Founded by Arjan Lulla in 1977, it is one of the leading production and distribu ...

Sriwass Sriwass is an Indian film director, and screenwriter known for his works in Telugu cinema. He is known for directing comedy and action films like '' Loukyam'' and ''Dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute Power ( ...

under Vedhaaswa Creations banner and directed by

. The film stars

Nandamuri Balakrishna Nandamuri Balakrishna (born 10 June 1960), also known as Balayya or NBK, is an Indian actor, film producer, politician and philanthropist known for his works in Telugu cinema. Balakrishna is an elected member of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative A ...

, Anjali,

Sonal Chauhan Sonal Chauhan (born 16 May 1985/1987) is an Indian actress, singer, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She predominantly works in Telugu and Hindi films. She won the title of Femina Miss India in 2005 and Miss World Tourism in 2005. She m ...

and Vikramjeet Virk music is composed by

S. Thaman Ghantasala Sai Srinivas Sivakumar (born 16 November 1983), professionally credited as Thaman S, is an Indian composer and playback singer known for his works majorly in Telugu and Tamil cinema. He is the recipient of the National Film Award f ...

. It is the 99th movie in the career of Nandamuri Balakrishna. The film's script was written by Sridhar Seepana, Gopimohan and Kona Venkat while the dialogues were written by M. Ratnam. The movie had released on 14 January 2016 as

Sankranthi Sankranti () refers to the transmigration of the sun from one zodiac to another in Indian astronomy. In ''Saurmana'' ''varsha'' (Hindu Solar year), there are twelve Sankrantis corresponding with twelve months of a year. The Sankrantis can be broa ...

Release. Later the movie was dubbed into Hindi as ''Yudh: Ek Jung'' by Cinekorn Movies in 2016. The film opened up to mixed reviews and was average at the

box-office A box office or ticket office is a place where ticket (admission), tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a Wicket gate, wicket. ...

Plot

The film begins in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

, where Chandu, an employee at Dharma Group of Industries, resides with his wife, Kathyayini's family, who works in Delhi. Once, an aspiring actor, Indu, befriends Chandu as she is in a quandary from a few gangsters hunting her brother. Once, the miscreants abduct her when Chandu locks horns with them and gets indirect enmity with Minister Govardhan Rao and a vile cop, Prabhakar, but he ceases them. Parallelly, Babji, his co-employee, heists the company amount for his daughter's nuptials when Chandu incriminates himself. Surprisingly, the attention of company Chieftain Rajasekhar Dharma is thrust on him when his father-in-law Lakshmi Narayana seeks the truth. Here, as a flabbergast, it's revealed that Chandu is none other than Chandrashekar Dharma, ''The Dictator,'' the chairman of the Dharma group of companies, and spins back. Chandrashekar Dharma is a big tycoon in India who fights against the mafia, and Aegis remains. Once, he gets acquainted with Kathyayini, an employee in his company, and they crush. Since Lakshmi Narayana is against elite groups, she introduces him as her colleague, and they knit. After a while, Chandrashekar battles a tyrant, Mahima Roy, for slaughtering his fatherly figure, Hari Prasad, by her malicious son-in-law, Vishwambhar. Now, Mahima kidnaps Chandrasekhar's family and demands that he fall at her feet. Whereat, Mahima receives frequent calls from her relatives worldwide, affirming that Chandrashekar has taken them into his custody, proving his network. Later, Chandrashekar eliminates Vishwambhar, and Mahima strikes him, stabbing Kathyayini in it. At that point, Chandrashekar quits Delhi on Kathyayini's plea, changing his identity. Presently, Chandrashekar is conscious of Vishwambhar's existence through the betrayal of his men. Ergo. he retrieves when his sly uncle Sivaram backstabs and notifies Vishwambhar, the ''Dictator's'' arrival who will conduct tribute for Hari Prasad. Thus, Vishwambhar onslaughts Sivaram turns side, reviling it as Chandrashekar's gameplay to clutch the blackguard. At last, he wipes out Vishwambhar and behests Mahima to leave the country. Finally, the movie ends Chandrashekar Dharma, continuing his legacy.

Cast

as Chandrashekhar Dharma "Chandu"/ Dictator * Anjali as Kathyayani, Chandu's wife *

as Indu, neighbour * Vikramjeet Virk as Vicky Bhai *

Rati Agnihotri Rati Agnihotri (born 10 December 1960) is an Indian actress, known for acting in Hindi, as well as in Telugu and Tamil language films. Her roles in the cult-tragedy film '' Ek Duuje Ke Liye'' (1981) and the drama film '' Tawaif'' (1985) earne ...

as Mahima Rai *

Kulbhushan Kharbanda Kulbhushan Kharbanda (born 21 October 1944) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi and Punjabi films. He is best known for his role as the antagonist Shakaal in '' Shaan'' (1980), Starting off with the Delhi-based theatre group ' Yatrik' in the ...

as Hari Prasad *

Aksha Pardasany Aksha Pardasany is an Indian actress who primarily works in Telugu films and Hindi web series. She made her debut in Malayalam with ''Goal'' (2007) and gained recognition in Telugu with films such as '' Yuvatha'' (2008), ''Ride'' (2009), and '' ...

as Shruti, Kathyayani's cousin *

Nassar Nassar (), is a given name and surname, commonly found in the Arabic language. Alternative spellings of this name, possibly due to transliteration include Naser, Nasser, Nasir, Naseer, or Nacer. People with the surname include: People with th ...

as Lakshmi Narayana, Kathyayani's father * Suman as Rajashekar Dharma, Chandu's brother * Nawab Shah as Viswambhar, Mahima's son-in-law *

Kabir Duhan Singh Kabir Duhan Singh (born 8 September 1986 in Gohana, Haryana) is an Indian actor, who appears in Telugu, Kannada, Tamil and Malayalam language films. After making his debut in the Telugu film '' Jil'' (2015), Singh has carved out a career as a ...

as Pandu Bhai *

Sayaji Shinde Sayaji Shinde (Marathi pronunciation: əjaːd͡ʒiː ʃin̪d̪eː born 13 January 1959) is an Indian actor who has acted in Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, English, Gujarati, Hindi, and Bhojpuri films. Sayaji started his act ...

as Bokha Sivaram *

Chalapathi Rao Tammareddy Chalapathi Rao (8 May 1944 – 24 December 2022) was an Indian actor and producer known for comedy and villainous roles in Telugu cinema. He acted in different roles in more than 600 films. Personal life and death Rao hailed from B ...

as I.G. *

Vennela Kishore Bokkala Kishore Kumar (born 19 September 1980), known professionally as Vennela Kishore, is an Indian actor and director who works in Telugu cinema. Known for his comedic roles, he earned the moniker "Vennela" after his first feature film ''Ven ...

as Kathyayani's brother *

Rajiv Kanakala Rajeev Kanakala (born 13 November 1969) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Telugu films Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu lang ...

as Indu's brother *

Raghu Babu Yerra Raghu, known professionally as Raghu Babu, is a Telugu comedian. He has worked in many films in Telugu industry. He is the eldest son of comedian and character actor Giri Babu. His native place is Ravinuthala. He is known for his ...

as Vasthu Bheeshmacharya * Y. Kasi Viswanath as Babji *

Prudhviraj Balireddy Prudhviraj (born 6 August 6 1964) is an Indian actor and politician known for his roles in Telugu films. He has appeared in over 100 films, primarily in comedic roles, and is widely recognised for his iconic dialogue "30 years indust ...

as Ramesh Patro *

Posani Krishna Murali Posani Krishna Murali (born 22 January 1958) is an Indian screenwriter, actor, director and producer who primarily works in Telugu cinema. He worked as a writer for over 150 Telugu films and directed a number of films. In 2009, he also conte ...

as Chandrashekhar Dharma's P.A. * Ajay as Inspector Prabhakar (Corrupted Police Officer) * Madhusudhan Rao as Minister Goverdhan Rao *

Ravi Prakash Ravi Prakash (born 4 December 1978) is an Indian actor who primarily appears in Telugu and Tamil films. Career Ravi was born in Vijayawada and grew up in Visakhapatnam, India. After completing his secondary education, he chose to pursue a car ...

as Inspector Rasool *

Ravi Babu Ravi Babu is an Indian actor, director, writer, and producer in Telugu film industry, Telugu cinema. He has written 13 films and directed 16. He has acted in roughly 67 films in his career. Personal life and career His father is actor Chalapa ...

as Director *

Vamsi Krishna Vamsi Krishna is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Telugu and Tamil films. He made his debut in '' Gharshana'' (2004) and went on to play the antagonist in films including ''Thadaiyara Thaakka'' (2012) and '' Ivan Veramathiri'' (2013) ...

as Minister's son *

Kalyani Natarajan Kalyani Natarajan is an Indian actress who appears in Telugu and Tamil films. She played prominent roles in ''Saivam'' (2014), ''Pisaasu'' (2014) and ''Mahanubhavudu'' (2017). Personal life and career A Tamilian from Mumbai, Kalyani has a de ...

as Mrs. Lakshmi Narayana *

Pavitra Lokesh Pavitra Lokesh is an Indian film and television actress. She appears primarily in Kannada and Telugu films playing supporting roles. The daughter of stage and film actor Mysore Lokesh, she made her film debut at the age of 16 and has since ap ...

as Rajashekar's wife *

Ashok Kumar Ashok Kumar (born Kumudlal Ganguly; 13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema. He is regarded as one of the greatest actors of Indian cinema. He is considered to be the first Super-st ...

as Lakshmi Narayana's brother *

Prabhas Sreenu Prabhas Sreenu is an Indian actor who primarily appears in Telugu films. He has won SIIMA Award for Best Comedian – Telugu for his performance in '' Gabbar Singh'' (2012). His notable films include ''Balupu'' (2013), ''Aagadu'' (2014), ''Sub ...

as Prabha *

Duvvasi Mohan Duvvasi Mohan is an Indian actor who is known for acting in comic roles, primarily in Telugu cinema, Telugu films. He is from Jagtial. He entered Telugu cinema as a producer, but later turned to acting and appeared in comedy roles in over 350 fi ...

as Prasad *

Hema Hema may refer to: * Hemā (mythology), a figure from Polynesian mythology * HEMA (store), a Dutch chain of stores * Hema (supermarket) (盒马), a supermarket chain in China * Hema maps, an Australian map publisher * Hema people, an ethnic grou ...

as Hema Patnaik *

G. V. Sudhakar Naidu G. V. Sudhakar Naidu is an Indian actor who played roles in Telugu films. He became a director in 2008 and has directed two Telugu films. His first film was ''Hero'' released in 2008 with Nitin Reddy and Bhavana. His second film as a director go ...

as Goon *

Ravi Varma Ravi Varma or Ravivarma is a Hindu male name used in India. It may refer to: People * Ravivarman Kulaśēkhara, 14th century warrior king of Quilon, Kerala * Ravi Varma of Padinjare Kovilakam (1745–1793), rebel prince regent of Calicut, Malabar ...

as Shruti's husband *

Satya Prakash Satya Prakash may refer to: * Satya Prakash (physicist) * Satya Prakash (actor) * D. Satya Prakash, Indian filmmaker See also

* {{hndis, Prakash, Satya ...

as Saxena *

Banerjee Banerjee, also known as Bandyopadhyay, is a Bengali Kulin Brahmin surname originating from the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. The surname belongs to the Rarhi clan of the Hindu Bengali Brahmin caste. History Notable people N ...

as Mahima Rai's P.A. *

Shawar Ali Shahwar Ali is an Indian actor and model who appears primarily in Bollywood, Tollywood and Sandalwood films. Early life and career Sarwar Ali was born and raised in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. His father was a farmer in Bhopal. He shifted to M ...

Gundu Sudarshan Gundu Sudarshan (born Surampudi Sudarshan Rao) is an Indian comedian and actor who works in Telugu films. He acted in more than 350 films. He also has stage experience from the age of 10. He entered the film industry with '' Mister Pellam'' in ...

*Giridhar as Kathyayani's brother *Ping Pong Surya as Babji's son *Mukhtar Khan as Goon *Deekshithulu as Rasool's assistant *Ambati Srinivas as Minister's son P.A. *Lab Sarath as Doctor *Junior Relangi as Kishanji *

Shraddha Das Shraddha Das is an Indian actress and model who predominantly appears in Telugu and Hindi films. She made her acting debut in the 2008 Telugu film '' Siddu from Sikakulam'', and since then has worked across six different film industries through ...

item number In Indian cinema, an item number or special song is a musical number inserted into a film that may or may not have any relevance to the plot. The term is commonly used within Indian films ( Bengali, Hindi, Kannada, Punjabi, Tamil, and Telugu c ...

"Tingo Tingo" *

Mumaith Khan Mumaith Khan (born 1 September 1985) is an Indian actress and model. She has appeared in numerous item numbers primarily in Telugu, Hindi, and Tamil films. Early life Khan was born on 1 September 1985. She was born and brought up in Bombay ( ...

"Tingo Tingo"

Soundtrack

Music composed by

. Music released on

EROS Music Eros Now Music is an Indian music studio and distributor based in Mumbai, India. It is the dependent and domestic music label of Eros International Eros International Media Ltd. (also known as Eros India) is an Indian motion picture pro ...

Company. The music of the film was launched on 20 December 2015 at

Amaravati Amaravati ( , Telugu language, Telugu: ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located in Guntur district on the right bank of the Krishna River, southwest of Vijayawada. The city derives its name from the nearby his ...

, the new Capital city of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

. This movie was the first to release its audio at Amaravati. As this movie is 99th film in Balakrishna's career, the association of 'Balayya Helping Hands' organised a rally from KBR Park,

to Audio Launch Venue at Amaravati with 99 cars with the permission of Government of Andhra Pradesh. First Audio CD copy was released by

Rayapati Sambasiva Rao Rayapati Sambasiva Rao is an Indian politician and a member of the 11th, 12th, 14th, 15th, and 16th Lok Sabha. He was one of the youngest members to be elected to the Rajya Sabha at the age of 39. He represented the Narasaraopet and Guntur parli ...

and presented it to Balakrishna. Anjali, Andhra Pradesh's Agriculture Minister Prathipati Pulla Rao, Ravela Kishore Babu, Sonal Chouhan,

Korrapati Ranganatha Sai Sai Korrapati is an Indian film producer and distributor who works predominantly in Telugu cinema . Early life and career He is born in Pallapadu. He ventured into Telugu film distribution in 1999 with Seetaramaraju. He owns a theatre Radhik ...

, Anil Sunkara, Ram Achanta,

Ramajogayya Sastry Darivemula Ramajogayya Sastry (born 24 August 1970) is an Indian film lyricist, known for his works in Telugu cinema and music. Early life Ramajogayya Sastry was born in Arepalli Muppalla, Ipuru Mandal near Narasaraopet of Palnadu distric ...

, Shyam K. Naidu, Brahma Kadali, Ambika krishna, Sreedhar Seepana,

Kona Venkat Kona Venkat ( born 19 February 1965) is an Indian screenwriter and producer known for his works in Telugu and Hindi cinema. He is known for his works in box office hits such as '' Alludu Seenu'', '' Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi'', '' Baadshah'', '' ...

, Gopi Mohan,

and others were present at this event.

Reception

Indiaglitz in its review states that "Dictator is an album that is for the mass and class audiences alike. Chura Chura.. stands out and is sure to be on the chartbusters. Gana Gana works lyrically."

Production

Production of this action drama film began at

Ramanaidu Studios Suresh Productions (also known as Suresh Movies, Vijaya Suresh Combines) is an Cinema of India, Indian film production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company known for its works in Telugu cinema. It is established in 19 ...

on 29 May 2015. Telugu actress Anjali and Balakrishna will star in this film, to be produced and directed by Sriwass (''

Loukyam ''Loukyam'' () is a 2014 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film directed by Sriwass. The film stars Gopichand Rao Ramesh Prakash Raj Nadhiya Sunil Sayaji Shinde and Raghu Babu Vennela Kishore Nadhiya Rakul Preet. It is produced by V. Anand ...

'' fame). In early July 2015, actress

was signed as one of the female lead in the film. This movie is the first Telugu film produced by Eros International Media Limited. Regular shooting for this film commenced on 20 July 2015. The lead actor Nandamuri Balakrishna lost 12 Kilograms of weight for the role in this movie. A wonderful set was built in

, Hyderabad for this movie. First schedule of the movie with few action sequences was shot in this set for 25 days. Introduction song written by

titled ''Gam Gam Gam Ganesha... Gouri Tanaya Sarvesha...'' with theme on Lord Ganesha was shot in a big set designed by Brahma Kadali at Chithrapuri Colony, Hyderabad with 99 dancers and more than 2000 junior artists under the choreographer

Prem Rakshith Prem Rakshith (born Thomas Satish) is an Indian choreographer who works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He is recipient of a National Film Award, three Nandi Awards and six Filmfare Awards. Early life and career Prem Rakshith was born in P ...

. On 24 August 2015, Eros International Media Ltd released a press note saying that the movie had completed its first schedule in Hyderabad. Second schedule of this movie was planned in Europe where some talkie part, few fights and songs was shot. In the end of August 2015, the movie unit started shooting in

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

at exotic locations. The movie unit completed another schedule at

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

on 2 December 2015; and the final schedule with heavy mass, fight sequences in the second week of December at

. On 18 December 2015, the film director Sriwass announced that shooting part was complete except for one song. The last song ''Tingo Tingo'' under choreography of Prem Rakshith, was shot at Hyderabad completing the shooting part of the film.

and the popular Item song dancer

paired up with Balakrishna in this song.

Box office

''Dictator'' collected ₹10 crore gross at the worldwide box office on its first day, and fetched its distributors ₹ 7.5 crore. It has beaten the record of ''

Lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

'' and become the second-biggest opener for Balakrishna after ''

Legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...

''. It has collected ₹18 crore gross at the AP/Telangana box office in its four-day-extended first weekend.

References

External links

* * {{Sriwass 2016 films 2010s Telugu-language films Films scored by Thaman S 2016 masala films Indian action films Films with screenplays by Kona Venkat Films directed by Sriwass 2016 action films