The makers of Sai Pallavi and Naga Chaitanya’s upcoming film Thandel, written and directed by Chandoo Modeti, released a short video offering a glimpse into the film on Saturday, January 6. The two-minute video shows Naga Chaitanya as a fisherman who is captured and tortured by Pakistani authorities. The video is also rife with patriotic dialogues. When a Pakistani officials taunts him about his patriotism, Naga Chaitanya’s character says, “Your land is a charitable piece from us. If you have this much attitude, just imagine our demeanour, when we are the ones who gave you that land as alms,” before going on to shout, “Bharat Mata ki Jai.”

Sai Pallavi's character is not revealed till the end of the video and is seen to be the love interest who is waiting for Naga Chaitanya to return. The film is produced by Bunny Vasu of Geetha Arts, with music by Devi Sri Prasad. Chandoo Mondeti has previously directed Karthikeya and Karthikeya 2, and also Premam and Savyasachi starring Naga Chaitanya. 

Naga Chaitanya and Sai Pallavi have earlier acted together in Love Story, where Naga Chaitanya played a Dalit Christian man who was in love with Sai Pallavi, a dominant caste Hindu woman. Sai Pallavi was last seen in Gargi, a Tamil film that was praised for its nuanced portrayal of sexual harassment. Meanwhile, Naga Chaitanya was last seen in Custody, a police drama.

Watch the first glimpse of Thandel here: