Disclaimer: Contains spoilers
A small Telugu family drama by a debutant director is raking in numbers at Telangana’s box office. Starring Priyadarshi and Kavya Kalyanram, Balagam is a rooted and unapologetic celebration of Telangana and its culture, a characteristic likely to have contributed to its unprecedented success. The film revolves around the death of the protagonist (Priyadarshi)’s grandfather, allowing comedian-turned-director Venu Yeldandi the leeway to extensively document the culture and traditions of Telangana.
The unprecedented success of Balagam is seen by many as indicative of a post-bifurcation phenomenon of filmmakers embracing and celebrating the Telangana identity, a trend that has gradually been on the rise since Telangana separated from united Andhra Pradesh and achieved statehood in 2014. Until not so long ago, the Telugu film industry was largely dominated by Andhra Pradesh natives who neglected the Telangana region, or worse, mocked the dialect.
As Sathya Prakash Elavarthi, an associate professor at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) points out, these issues came under severe scrutiny during the second phase of the Telangana statehood movement in 2009, with many Telugu filmmakers being heavily criticised for the poor representation of Telangana on the big screen.
In retaliation, during the statehood movement, films such as Jai Bolo Telangana, Jai Telangana, and Rajanna among others, began to challenge the existing stereotypes against Telangana. However, “even though these films posed challenges to the ideological domination of Andhra culture in Telugu Cinema, they were too explicitly political, lacking the cinematic appeal affecting the spectatorial pleasures of Telangana viewers,” Sathya Prakash and UoH PhD scholar Himabindu Chintakunta write in their article ‘Disruption and Reconstitution of Spectatorial Pleasures in Telugu Cinema’.
Sathya cites filmmaker Sekhar Kammula as an example of this change in dynamic. “Previously in his film Anand, Sekhar had portrayed the Telangana language in a bad light. But now, he has transformed into a filmmaker interested in promoting Telangana culture,” he says. Sekhar’s Fidaa and Love Story are based in Telangana, and have been noted for their unabashed portrayal of the Telangana culture.
Filmmaker Venu Udugula, who is a native of Telangana, shares a differing view. “I think films with a subaltern background such as Balagam are a result of the digital revolution. Across the country, there is good reception for subaltern films now. There are two trends currently prevailing in the film industry that resonate with the audience. There are the films with a religious consciousness, and in contrast, there are also films of rational ideologies projecting the subaltern culture, which also has a market.” He cites Jai Bhim, Jallikattu, and Kantara as examples of subaltern films.
While Balagam does not specify the caste location of its lead character, played by Priyadarshi, there are some indications that he belongs to a Backward Class community.
In Telangana, many communities consume alcohol socially — whether it be at a celebration or a mourning. The practice is common among women as well. The authenticity of Balagam, which shines through while capturing such relatable aspects of the culture, also seems to have widely resonated with the audience.
In the process of capturing the post-death rituals in detail, the film almost turns into an anthropological documentary at certain points. But the cinematic way in which the film was shot — accompanied by spectacular music, visuals, and brilliant performances — redeems the film from the ‘documentary’ tag, instead allowing it to be celebrated by the masses.
“The formation of Telangana has given confidence to filmmakers that their films rooted in Telangana identity would be well received, but there is also a market for content with subaltern culture. So, calling it merely a post-bifurcation phenomenon is not accurate,” Venu argues.
Concurring with Venu Udugula, film critic Arunank Latha says, “The reason these films are doing well is because they are rooted in nativity. People are often searching for themselves in the films they watch. Kantara is a good example of this. The film is infused with the local culture and idioms, and it is packaged in a commercial film format.” There is a dearth of content now, and people are tired of the same formulaic films, says Arunank. “Filmmakers are finding that there are stories in the lives of people around us. So, they are going after films rooted in particular geographies,” he says, citing Allu Arjun starrer Pushpa: The Rise as an example.
“The assertion of Telangana identity has now become a saleable commodity. During the second phase of Telangana statehood movement, there was a huge fight about Telugu cinema treating Telangana customs and language in an unflattering manner. Now that the state has been formed, it is easy to capitalise on this emotion,” says Sathya.
On the commodification of the Telangana identity, Venu Udugula says that a political change will also bring a social change. “The state’s formation is a political change and the visual media is now also capitalising on the social change it has brought. There is a market for it. The market will always see what is in demand, and this is the current trend,” he says.
Commodification or not, there have been visible changes in the way Telugu cinema has corrected its course in how it portrays Telangana over the years. As Sathya and Himabindu write in ‘Disruption and Reconstitution of Spectatorial Pleasures in Telugu Cinema’, “The changes in political power structures in Telangana are being manifested in cinema where characters from Telangana and their language are not being used to generate humour as in the past but are driving the narrative.”