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''Takkari Donga'' () is a 2002 Indian Telugu-language
Western film The Western is a film genre defined by the American Film Institute as films which are "set in the American West that mbodythe spirit, the struggle, and the demise of the new frontier." Generally set in the American frontier between the Calif ...
directed and produced by Jayanth C. Paranjee. The film stars Mahesh Babu, Lisa Ray,
Bipasha Basu Bipasha Basu (born 7 January 1979) is an Indian actress. Primarily known for her work in Hindi films, she List of awards and nominations received by Bipasha Basu, has received a Filmfare Awards, Filmfare Award. In the 2000s and 2010s, she was ...
, and Rahul Dev in pivotal roles. The film follows a fearless outlaw who offers to safeguard the daughter of his accomplice in return for a map to a secret diamond mine. However, his quest is compromised after a bandit gets wind of the secret map. The film was mostly shot in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Upon release, ''Takkari Donga'' received mixed reviews and was a box office flop. It won five state
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 ...
including Best Audiographer, Best Cinematographer, and Best Fight Master.


Plot

The film starts with the slain bandit Shaka killing his own elder brother for information related to diamond valley, who is also known to rancher Veeru Dada. In the encounter, Veeru jumps off into a river from a cliff. After 18 years in Gajner,
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...
, we have Veeru with an amputated leg, giving info to Raja, a mischievous, and tough
outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them. ...
who loots banks in style. Raja gives Veeru a share of 50% for all his tip-offs. Raja becomes more daring as the price tag on his head increases by thousands. There is another mischievous thief, Panasa. She and her uncle follow Raja so she can dupe him and escape with all the looted money. As things go on a frolicking way between Panasa and Raja, Shaka is searching for Veeru. Veeru realizes Shaka will kill him soon. Hence, Veeru offers a large diamond to Raja and asks him to take his daughter Bhuvana to his brother Dharma's place via a dangerous route. Enroute, there are some romantic encounters, and they fall in love. Raja sees a house that emotionally disturbs him. When Bhuvana asks about it he reveals that it is his childhood house and his father and sister were killed by an unknown masked person and he became a thief on the journey of finding him. When Bhuvana asks how will he identify the killer, he tells her there is a scar on the killer's hand by which he can identify him. Later, when they go to Dharma's place, Dharma is killed. Raja goes to a nearby shop to arrange a funeral for Dharma. But it is Shaka who is disguised as the shop owner. When Shaka arrives he sees a map in Bhuvana's hand. He forcibly tries to take it and in excitement he said that for that map he killed his brother, Bhuvana's father, Dharma and that map is the way to diamond valley. Meanwhile, a fight ensues in which the map is burnt. Then Shaka ties Raja to a tree and forcibly takes Bhuvana as only she knows the route to that hidden diamond treasury. Meanwhile, Raja releases himself and went to Shaka. A fight takes place. Later, Shaka reveals he knows who killed Raja's father and he will give details about him only when Raja helps him cross the dangerous terrain to reach diamond valley with hidden treasure. Raja agrees. With the help of Raja, Shaka finds the path to the hidden treasure. While Shaka is taking the diamonds, Raja notices the scar on Shaka's hand by which he realizes it is Shaka who killed his father and sister. Raja kills Shaka and reunites with Bhuvana.


Cast


Production

The film was launched on 8 October 2000 at Ramanaidu Studios.
Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
began on 3 January 2001. Major portions were filmed in the
Colorado Plateau The Colorado Plateau is a physiographic and desert region of the Intermontane Plateaus, roughly centered on the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States. This plateau covers an area of 336,700 km2 (130,000 mi2) within w ...
region of the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, including Monument Valley and
Arches National Park Arches National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in eastern Utah. The park is adjacent to the Colorado River, north of Moab, Utah. The park contains more than 2,000 natural arch, natural ...
. The climax fight sequence was shot in
Chalakudy Chalakudy () is a municipal town situated on the banks of Chalakudy River in Thrissur district of the Kerala state in India. It is the headquarters of Chalakudy taluk. It is the base camp for travellers to Athirappilly Falls and Vazhachal Falls ...
,
Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
. The film was initially titled ''Magadheera'' (Someone Special), with ''Veera'' (The Warrior) also considered. Before finalising the title, the website '' Idlebrain.com'' held a contest inviting suggestions for the film’s title. However, director Jayant C. Paranji was not satisfied with the suggestions.


Music

The soundtrack was composed by Mani Sharma and the lyrics were written by Bhuvana Chandra, Vennelakanti, Chandra Bose and Kula Sekhar. * Theme - Instrumental * "Nalugurikee" - Shankar Mahadevan, Lyrics by Chandrabose * "Aleba Aleba" - K. K, Kalpana, Lyrics by Bhuvana Chandra * "Hey Mama" - Tippu, Kalpana, Lyrics by Vennalakanti * "Bagundammo" - SPB Charan, Usha, Lyrics by Kula Sekhar * "Chukkallu Chandhrudee" - S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Prasanna, Lyrics by Bhuvana Chandra


Reception

A critic from ''
Deccan Chronicle ''Deccan Chronicle'' is an English-language daily newspaper based in Hyderabad, India. Founded in 1938, it was initially launched as a Weekly newspaper, weekly and later converted into a daily. The newspaper's name reflects its origins in the ...
'' wrote, "A smooth, technically brilliant movie after a considerable time in Telugu, ''Takkari Donga'' is entertaining and, in spite of its stereotypical pitfalls, is certainly a refreshing break from the deluge of routine love stories". A critic from ''
The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...
'' said, "Though it is not new for the Telugu film makers to make cowboy films, this film scores in technical quality, with cinematographer Jayanan Vincent leading in his department. The visual is set against a kind of dusty hue throughout its run, reflecting the wild West". A critic from ''
The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
'' stated, "If you don't mind half a dozen songs slackening the pace of the film ''Takkari Donga'' is a complete entertainer". Jeevi of '' Idlebrain.com'' wrote, "''Takkari Donga'' is a sweet and sensible film". ''Andhra Today'' wrote, "Jayanth as producer and director takes the audience through a thrilling journey as in the great westerns. His impressive style, choice of locations, setting and action sequences will amaze the Tollywood audience. The meticulousness and dexterity of both the director and the cameraman are evident in almost every frame of the movie. While the variety is interesting and will mesmerize the audience temporarily the movie suffers from a very weak storyline and may not hold the audience in a spell".


Dubbed versions

The film was dubbed into
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 ''Choron Ka Chor'' by Goldmines Telefilms in 2014 and into
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 ''Vetri Veeran''.


Awards

;
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 ...
* Best Audiographer - P. Madhusudhan Reddy (in Telugu) * Special Jury Award - Mahesh Babu * Best Fight Master - Vijayan * Best Cinematographer - Jayanan Vincent * Best Child Actor - Koushik Babu


References


External links

* {{Jayanth C. Paranjee, state=collapsed 2000s Telugu-language films 2002 films 2002 Western (genre) films 2000s Western (genre) comedy films 2002 action comedy films Indian action comedy films Indian Western (genre) films Indian Western (genre) comedy films Films shot in New Mexico Films shot in San Francisco Films shot in Texas Films shot in Utah Films shot in Arizona Films set in Rajasthan Films shot in Rajasthan Films about treasure hunting Films scored by Mani Sharma Films shot in Colorado Films shot in the United States Foreign films set in the United States Films directed by Jayanth C. Paranjee