Gang Leader
Gang Leader is a 1991 Indian Telugu-language action crime film written, directed by Vijaya Bapineedu and produced by Maganti Ravindranath Chowdary.[1] The film stars Chiranjeevi and Vijayashanti in the lead roles, while Rao Gopal Rao, Anandaraj, Murali Mohan, and Sarath Kumar play other key roles. The soundtrack was composed by Bappi Lahiri with dance choreography by Prabhu Deva. The genre-bending semi-fiction film explores the concepts of exploitation of law enforcement by anti-social behaviour and the impact of mob psychology.[2][3]
| Gang Leader | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Vijaya Bapineedu |
| Produced by | Maganti Ravindranath Chowdary |
| Written by | Paruchuri Brothers (dialogues) |
| Screenplay by | Vijaya Bapineedu |
| Story by | Vijaya Bapineedu |
| Starring | Chiranjeevi Vijayashanti Rao Gopal Rao Anandaraj Murali Mohan Sarath Kumar |
| Music by | Bappi Lahari |
| Cinematography | Lok Singh |
| Edited by | Vijaya Bapineedu |
Production company | Shyam Prasad Arts |
| Distributed by | Geetha Arts |
Release date |
|
| Country | India |
| Language | Telugu |
The film was recorded as an Industry Hit and a cult classic by becoming the Telugu's daily vernacular. It was screened at the International Film Festival of India.[2] The film is often credited as one of the biggest hits in Chiranjeevi's career. It surpassed the box office collections of the blockbuster and industry hit Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari. Later, it was dubbed in Tamil with same title. The film was later remade in bollywood as Aaj Ka Goonda Raaj, which Chiranjeevi reprising his role and Meenakshi Seshadri playing the role of Vijayashanti, and in Kannada as Kutumba, starring Upendra.[2][1]
Plot
Raghupathi (Murali Mohan), Raghava (Sarath Kumar) and Rajaram (Chiranjeevi) are brothers. Raghupathi is the only breadwinner of the family, Raghava is preparing for the Civil Services Examination, and Rajaram is an unemployed, and freelance dancer who spends time with his four friends in search of jobs. They roam in the city until midnight. Rajaram comes home at midnight and sleeps until noon; his grandmother Sabari (Nirmalamma) yells at him for his irresponsibility and callousness. One day, Rajaram makes Kanyakumari (Vijayashanti) vacate the house on a payment basis as she is not paying the rent to the landlord. Consequently, she barges into Rajaram's house for accommodation.
At one situation, Rajaram goes to custody for money so that he can support his brother Raghava who is in need of funding for his IAS preparation. Meanwhile, Ekambaram (Raogopal Rao) a Mafia ringleader known for contract killing, and extortion, alongside his brother Kanakambaram (Anandaraj) kill Rajaram's elder brother Raghupathi as he witnesses a homicide. Rajaram was spending time in jail when this incident happens, however his friends are aware of Raghupathi's death. Rajaram, on the other hand, thinks that his brother's death was an accident.
Raghava becomes an IAS officer and marries Latha (Sumalatha), which was a scheme planned by Ekambaram and Kanakambaram so that they can escape criminal cases with his support. Latha hates Raghava's family members, whereas Kanyakumari loves Rajaram and his family members. Meanwhile, Rajaram comes to know about his brother's death and inquires as to who was responsible for the death. His friends are also murdered by Ekambaram and Kanakambaram at the time. Rajaram is framed by the murders, and Raghava disowns him. With Kanyakumari's help, Rajaram escapes from jail, and Kanyakumari reveals that she is Ekambaram's daughter. She ran away from home after her father killed her mother, and then she began moving into other people's houses. After hearing this, Rajaram falls for her. The film ends with Rajaram avenging his brother's death by killing the villains.
Cast
| Actor | Character |
|---|---|
| Chiranjeevi | Rajaram |
| Vijayashanti | Kanyakumari |
| Raogopal Rao | Ekambaram |
| Anandaraj | Kanakambaram |
| Murali Mohan | Raghupati |
| Sarath Kumar | Raghava |
| Nirmalamma | Sabari (Rajaram's grandmother) |
| Sudha | Lakshmi (Raghupati's wife) |
| Sumalatha | Latha (Raghava's wife) |
| Nutan Prasad | Home Minister Gali Subba Rao |
| Kaikala Satyanarayana | Jailer |
| Allu Ramalingaiah | Sidhanthi |
| Narayan Rao | Narayana |
| Hari Prasad | Hari |
| Maharshi Raghava | Raghava |
| Jayalalitha | Chukka |
| Nuthalapati Subbaro | House owner |
Soundtrack
The Music and background score was provided by Bappi Lahiri and the lyrics were penned by Veturi Sundararama Murthy and Bhuvanachandra. The soundtrack was an instant hit and "Papa Rita" and "Vaana Vaana Velluvaye" were a rage in the entire state that time.
Bhuvanachandra noted that "Vaana Vaana" was his first song on rain, he was initially apprehensive about writing this song since other songs of same nature were popular. Bappi composed the tune at Suresh Guest House, initially tune was rejected however Bhuvan insisted that tune should be retained.[4] Later, the song "Vaana Vaana Velluvaye" was re-mixed by Mani Sharma for the 2012 film Rachcha.
| Song Title | Singers | Lyricist |
|---|---|---|
| "Papa Rita" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam | Bhuvana Chandra |
| "Paala Bugga" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Chitra | Veturi Sundararama Murthy |
| "Bhadrachalam" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Chitra | Bhuvana Chandra |
| "Vaana Vaana Velluvaye" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Chitra | Bhuvana Chandra |
| "Vayasu Vayasu" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Chitra | Veturi Sundararama Murthy |
| "Panisaasasa" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Chitra | Bhuvana Chandra |
Reception
The movie was a huge success. It is considered to be one of the top movies in Chiranjeevi's career. This movie earned more than 70 million of Distributory Share. Gang Leader did a 162-day run at Sudharshan theatre in Hyderabad. The movie successfully completed 100 days in more than 50 theaters. The movie was dubbed into Tamil and Kannada. It was a success in those areas also.[2][3]
Trivia
The classic car which was used in movie "Citroën CX pallas" at the time owned by Relangi Thirumalla Babu, was the only car in South India at that time. Car can be seen in the movie as Chiranjeevi and Vijayashanti are talking and scene cut to Marriage and Vijayashanti commands Chiranjeevi to follow her to marriage.[2][3]
References
- "'Gang Leader' Vijaya Bapineedu passes away". 12 February 2019 – via www.thehindu.com.
- "Gang Leader – Chiranjeevi: Take a look at the actor's imprint in the showbiz world". The Times of India.
- "Gang Leader (1991) | Gang Leader Movie | Gang Leader Telugu Movie Cast & Crew, Release Date, Review, Photos, Videos". FilmiBeat.
- Narasimham, M. L. (22 September 2012). "'I wrote 'vana vana…' in the train'" – via www.thehindu.com.
External links
- Gang Leader on IMDb