Meet the oggu katha artistes from Nalgonda, who hogged the limelight in 'World of Senapathi', a glimpse of aha's web original film Senapathi starring Rajendra Prasad
100% Telugu streaming platform aha is gearing up to entertain audiences with their upcoming web original film titled Senapathi, the crime drama that marks the OTT debut of veteran actor Rajendra Prasad on December 31. Directed by Pavan Sadineni (who has helmed Prema Ishq Kaadhal in the past), the film is produced by Sushmitha Konidela and Vishnu Prasad under Gold Box Entertainments.
Earlier this week, the film hit the headlines with World of Senapathi, which offered a sneak peek into the film's ambience. A major highlight of the glimpse was the effort to tell the story of Senapathi through the oggu katha tradition with intriguing mythological parallels. The oggu katha narrated the story of two characters SI Krishna (Naresh Agastya) and Krishna Murthy (Rajendra Prasad) - two supposed modern-day incarnations of Krishna in Kaliyuga, who adopt different paths to accomplish the same goal.
A group of four oggu katha artistes from Nalgonda - Chinnam Srinu (main singer), Kondeboyina Mahesh, Kadakanchi Parasuramulu (chorus) and JB Laxman Ganga (lyricist) were brought on board by the team of Senapathi for the same. For the uninitiated, oggu katha is a storytelling tradition unique to the Golla Kuruma community in Telangana and originated as a tool to narrate glorious tales of kings, warriors and Gods to the masses. The small two-headed drum, popularly referred to as damarukam, besides anklets and dhol are integral elements to the storytelling tradition.
Expressing his happiness about the oggu katha artistes getting their due among audiences, Senapathi director Pavan Sadineni exclaims, "So much of struggle went into finding the right voices and finally everything paid off. It's heartening to see the reaction of the singers when they felt very happy for creating an identity for them. They felt it as an achievement coming from a backward place and singing in a city like Hyderabad. They don't even know what they are contributing exactly, but today their contribution has made things explode. That's the beauty of art and cinema. Talent anywhere won't go wasted. Everyone gets their due when the time arrives."
Gnaneswari Kandregula, Harshavardhan, Keshav Deepak and Rakendu Mouli also essay crucial roles in Senapathi. aha is also home to some of the biggest Telugu releases in 2021, including Love Story, Unstoppable with NBK, 3 Roses, One, Manchi Rojuloachaie, Romantic, Most Eligible Bachelor, Anubhavinchu Raja, Sarkaar, Chef Mantra, The Baker and The Beauty, Krack, Alludu Garu, 11th Hour, Naandhi, Super Deluxe, Tharagathi Gadhi Daati, Maha Ganesha, Parinayam, and Ichata Vahanamulu Nilupa Radu.
