20 Actors of Telugu Cinema who dazzled in 2019

With the spirit boosted by C/o Kancharapalem the year before, 2019 saw increased number of new actors. There was a functional necessity for this. Thanks to the number of biopics and stories set in small town Bahujan worlds, the year saw a large number of ensembles with new faces. Directors had to let the actors be, than present them in stereotypical cardboard acts. This resulted in a lot of natural acting and characters that felt more real than dramatic. There was an explosion of new faces and some outstanding performances were bound to come challenging the spotlight on stars. And I had to share my excitement with the performances that stayed with me.

Okay, let me start with the actors who sparkled despite their smaller screen times. They may not have affected the narrative trajectories directly but their performances came alive adding to the believable milieu the protagonists were set in. Besides, they were just a delight to watch. You will see each one of them only more in the years to come.

Here’s the list of those sparkling mentions:

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1. Sunayana and Urvashi as Anasuya and Sulochana in Oh! Baby: With her outwardly nasty behavior and childlike meanness, Sunayna excels like the love-child of Suryakantham and Bramhanandam. On the other hand, Urvashi is equally mean, but more internal and playful.
2. Tharun Bhascker as Saidulu in Falaknuma Das: As the ego-inflating policeman who’ll shout and slap the rowdy of the rowdies, Tharun was fun to watch for his nuanced dialogue delivery and arresting screen presence.
3. Anvesh Michael and Jagadeesh Prathap Bandari in Mallesham: Both of them bring a simplicity to screen which could otherwise go overboard easily. Anvesh emoting as the caring yet critiquing friend and Jagadeesh as the self-sacrificing sweet pal, make the camera invisible.
4. Lakshman Meesala & Abhay Bethiganti in George Reddy: Lakshman for his meditative monologues and Abhay for his firecracker outburst at slightest of provocations giving a seesaw effect to the story.
5. Sharanya Pradeep as Daasi in Dorasani: She’s like the mother-earth bearing witness to all the patriarchal oppression felt in the story. Helpless and aching, she brings it all on screen.
6. Suhas for all the films he did in 2019: Isn’t it just enough to watch Suhas on big screen? With that stirring voice, charming smile and vulnerable gaze don’t we want more of him?
7. All the kids in Mallesham: For the uninhibited ease in their lines and flawless delivery, each kid engages like we’re watching a children’s film dominating the first 30 minutes in the story.

And now the list of outstanding performances that pierced into our psyche and fulled the narrative progressions with their sheer craft. And just look at the diversity:

1) Thiruveer as Lalan in George Reddy

He is menace in motion. With his simmering eyes and body language, he’s a ticking time-bomb that can explode any moment on screen. As the revenge-hungry Lalan in George Reddy, Thiruveer blazes as the vulnerably disturbed soul in an ensemble dotted with a dozen characters. He smiles like a boy, acts like a submissive brat at home and a ruthless rowdy in the streets whose thirst for revenge fuels the major part of the narrative. With that range coupled with compelling screen presence and measured delivery, he’s pure craft at play. You might hate him but you cannot escape empathizing with his insecurity. The chilling energy of the climax scene is only a by-product of his performance. Undoubtedly the best on-screen performance in decades. He’s here to push benchmarks in acting for Telugu Cinema.

2) Ananya Nagalla as Padma in Mallesham

Playing the small-town Telangana housewife, she treads a territory where there’s no reference. Except for the loud badcow-uttering ‘raw’ girl interpretations, or the dark-skinned muted Daasi acts, we never saw a Telangana small town girl as the aspirational lead. She smiles like your crush, teases like a girlfriend, comforts like a mother and leads like a partner. With elegance and grace that is never seen on-screen for a small-town Telangana girl character, Ananya will be etched out in Cinema history as the first Telangana heroine. You’ll not hear this now as the industry and film writing is still Andhra-dominated. But academic readings will be bound to freeze her name for the way she comes alive as Padma in the socio-cultural milieu of Mallesham. It’s just about a couple more Padmas from her in the future, and you’ll have your Telangana Savitri.

3) Shivathmika as Devaki in Dorasani

In my review at the time of the release I wrote: It’s hard to believe that Shivathmika, playing Devaki, is just 19 in real life. With eyes that speak volumes, her gait and elegant presence for a Dorasaani (queen), she becomes the soul of the film; her movements, with minimal dialogues, gradually become the heartbeat of the film as the narrative conflicts progress. She’s actress material with a gracefully confident debut… And today, almost after six months, I am only more surprised how she pulled off such a matured act. With barely few lines in the entire length of the film, it’s totally her performance that drives the story forward. She’s a gifted artist whom we’re going to see more often in the years come in diverse roles.

4) Lakshmi as Baby in Oh! Baby

At 70, Baby is the spirited woman although betrayed by everyone in her life, from family to God. Yet she is so full of love and life. Her eyes twinkle full of dreams to sing and dance. But she’s found drowned in her routines taking care of her canteen business and son’s family. She can be bitchy and competitive like a kid. Her overbearing love only drains the family. In a heart-melting scene, she walks out carrying all the baggage facing a rejection from the family. She craves to escape and have some fun. With such varied shades, being the veteran at her job, Lakshmi’s performance bleeds life making you weep out of joy experiencing a character so alive. May such roles be written more often bringing this Baby back on screen.

5) Rahul Ramakrishna as Dutta in Kalki

Carrying the entire narrative burden on his shoulders, he’s the human anchor in a story full of exaggerated performances and loud exposition. For the boy next door Bahujan look and persona Rahul carries, he delivers a sincere performance retaining his own brand of acting. He was expected to be comical and yet a thinking character as Journalist Deva Dutta. And he switches this range with ease. No actor in the recent times has captured the imagination of the Telugu-speaking states more than he did with Shiva in Arjun Reddy. And the credit goes to his informed interpretations of the characters he plays fused with his subtle craft of acting that feels so immediate, everyday and relatable. With this Dutta in Kalki comes alive as memorable although the film itself may fade in the public memory. With all the burden of expectations, his best is yet to come though, mining all his faculties.

6) Sai Chand as Subbayya in Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

When you’re surrounded by high-pitched performances in an exaggerated epic war drama, you have to match up to the kitsch and submit to the design. Almost everyone is Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy does that to deliver a memorable Chiranjeevi film for his 60s. Actor Sai Chand as the peasant Subbayya does it too but delivers it with an additional realistic take making it arrestingly believable. At 63 he is fit and graphically beefy for a tilling peasant. He chases a horse and throws himself on the ground losing to an unreasonable challenge. Everyone weeps for him, including the audiences in the theatre. Although he’s just present in one scene where the conscience of the lead character gets motivated by by it for the rest of the story. Pitch-perfect Veteran actor in Said Chand’s needs to be seen more.

7) Vivek Chepuri & Sunjit Akkinepalli as Ravi and Raju in Falaknuma Das

These boys are ruthlessness personified as the lawless thugs. Right from the opening glimpse of them committing a cold-blooded murder in public, their blood-smeared faces stare into us with terror. However as the narrative unfolds, their implosive act injects a sense of unpredictability into the narrative. Vivek Chepuri as Ravi is the wild dog who can pounce on you any moment while Sunjit Akkinepalli as Raju is the thinking wolf of the pack who leads. With some of the most cinematic moments, both of them hoist a challenging opposition that is deadly. Again in another captivating ensemble in the year, they both standout for their chilling acts. Their raw screen presence should bring them more chances.

Special mention

Sudeep as Avuku Raju in Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy

For all the swag and screen presence in Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy, Sudeep simply cannot be ignored as the envying charm he processes to challenge Chirajeevi’s character at regular intervals in the narrative. Each time he appears on screen, everything in the narrative stops to just look at him move. Perhaps he’s the only actor in the country at the moment who can effortlessly share screen with any star and yet do his thing with his own interpretation.

Copyright ©2020 Amarnath Sandipamu