''Prema Pusthakam'' () is a 1993 Indian Telugu-language

romance film Romance films involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their ...

which was partly directed by Gollapudi Srinivas before his death on the set of the film; it was later finished by his father, Gollapudi Maruthi Rao. It stars newcomers

Ajith Kumar Ajith Kumar Subramaniam (born 1 May 1971) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Tamil cinema. To date, he has starred in over 63 films, and won four Vijay Awards, three Cinema Express Awards, three Filmfare Awards South and three Ta ...

and Kanchan, with Devendran was the music composer. This film is the first film that Ajith Kumar shot for and is his only

Telugu film Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Based in Film Nagar, Hyderabad, Telug ...

to date. The film was temporarily put on hold after the director died. 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 ...

Plot

Sreekar and Charitra are college students. They are expelled from their college. They find themselves homeless and unemployed. They decide to marry. On the eve of the marriage, a rich old man tries to disrobe Charitra with the intention of raping her. Charitra prevents him from disrobing and raping her. She stabs him to death with a thick piece of glass. The next day, she marries Sreekar. Seconds after the wedding, police enter the marriage hall and arrest Charitra on charges of murdering the old man. Even after this incident, Sreekar neither hates her nor does he abandon her. The court finds Charitra guilty of murder and sentences her.

Cast

Production

The film was written by Gollapudi Srinivas, son of noted director Gollapudi Maruthi Rao, on the basis of the 1989 Bengali film '' Aamar Tumi''. In early 1992 and

was signed on to feature in the lead role. Shooting for the film began on 2 August 1992. However, during the ninth day of the shoot, the debutant director died after succumbing to injuries suffered during a water accident on sets in

Vizag 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 ...

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 ...

. The death led to creation of the Gollapudi Srinivas Award, with the director's father Gollapudi Maruthi Rao giving the award to promising debutant directors to continue his son's legacy. The film was duly delayed and later completed by Srinivas's father and only released in 1993.

Soundtrack

The songs were composed by Devendran.

Release and reception

The film has been described by commentators as an "eminently forgettable" debut for

, due to the problems faced during production. The film was reviewed by '' Zamin Ryot''. It was later dubbed and released in

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

as ''Kadhal Puthagam'' in 1997. A reviewer of the dubbed version wrote "The screenplay could have been better as the story flow seems to be discontinuous at times. In spite of this, the director has shown some flashes of talent in some scenes, especially scenes involving Ajit and Kanchan".

Awards

;

(in Telugu) * Best Screenplay Writer - Gollapudi Maruthi Rao * Best Costume Designer - Manohar Reddy * Special Jury Award - Kanchan

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 2373606 1993 films 1990s Telugu-language films Films shot in Visakhapatnam Indian romance films 1990s romance films Films scored by Devendran