Kannappa

<p>The story follows the life of Thinnadu, a fierce tribal warrior, and his journey from being an adamant atheist to becoming a sincere devotee of Vayulinga, a deity of Shiva. The film, based on the legend of —a devotee of god —took nearly a decade to materialize. In December 2013, actor, screenwriter and director told the media that he was working on the pre-production of a 14th-century period drama film titled , with cast in the title role. In June 2015, actor-producer announced that his production company, , would partner with an American company to produce a film titled , with Bharani attached as director. According to reports, Bharani sold his screenplay of to Manchu after years of trying to find a producer. Manchu then brought in additional writers to revise and adapt the script as needed. According to Manchu, the decision to move forward with the film was made in January 2023. was officially launched with a ceremony on 18 August 2023 at in . Mukesh Kumar Singh, known for directing (2013) on , was brought on board as the director. The film was produced by Vishnu’s father, , under the companies and AVA Entertainments. At the time of the launch, the story was reported to be developed by , Thota Prasad, , and . In September, Manchu stated that Parachuri, Thota, Thotapalli, , , and G. Eshwar Reddy were “instrumental in developing a script”. In the film’s first-look poster, Manchu is listed as the writer, while the “story development” credits were attributed to Paruchuri Gopala Krishna, Eshwar Reddy, G. Nageswara Reddy, and Thota Prasad. The story is set in the second century CE. To make the dialogues more accessible to contemporary audiences, Manchu chose to avoid using chaste Telugu dialect. Vishnu Manchu plays the title role of , a devotee of god . In July 2019, reports suggested that has been cast in the female lead. However, at the film’s official launch in August 2023, was confirmed for the role instead. She later exited the project in September 2023 due to scheduling conflicts. was subsequently announced as her replacement, marking her second Telugu film after . The cast also includes as Mahadeva Shastri, as Nathanathudu, and as Pannaga. In September 2023, and were confirmed to appear in undisclosed cameo roles. was reportedly in talks to play . But the role eventually went to Aggarwal. Mohanlal and Prabhas were later revealed to be portraying Kirata and Rudra, respectively. According to Manchu, both actors—longtime friends of his family—agreed to join the film out of “love and respect” for his father, Babu, and declined any remuneration for their appearances. was cast as Lord Shiva, marking his second portrayal of the god after (2023). Manchu had envisioned Kumar in the role while writing the script, but Kumar initially declined the offer twice. It was only through the liaisoning of , who was directing Kumar in at the time, that he agreed to take on the part. He also charged “a lot less than his usual fees”. Vishnu Manchu went for in New Zealand in April 2019. Initially, the crew scouted in Ireland, , , , , and Canada in a search for the 2nd century , with unpolluted sky and scenic forests. began on 25 September 2023 in New Zealand. Filming was temporarily halted in late October after Vishnu sustained an injury while performing a fight sequence, where the blades of a drone made contact with his arm. In New Zealand, the film was shot in various locations across , , , , , and . Reportedly, about 80 percent of the film will be shot in New Zealand. completed a 15-day shoot in New Zealand. The first schedule of filming completed on 23 December 2023, in New Zealand. On 28 February 2024, the production team announced that the second schedule has commenced in New Zealand. joined as the dance choreographer. The team then headed to after wrapping up this schedule. Kumar joined the shoot in April, while Prabhas arrived in May. Both their scenes were shot in , Hyderabd. With its last schedule in Ramoji Film City, the entire shoot was wrapped up. According to Manchu, most of the VFX footage was used for “godly effects”, animal sequences, and in the climax. In a pre-release interview, Manchu remarked that India lacks skilled VFX producers and supervisors, admitting that he felt “embarrassed” by the state of VFX workflow witnessed during production. have composed the original score and songs for the film. , , and were the lyricists for the songs of the film. The film was originally scheduled to release on 25 April 2025 in and dubbed versions of , , , and languages, However it was delayed due to VFX enhancement and post-production issues and was later released on 27 June 2025. On 27 May 2025, released an official statement alleging ‘Sabotage and personal vendetta’, as a hard drive of the film containing footage of action sequence and critical work was stolen during transit. At , following their participation in the premiere of , the makers unveiled their film’s teaser, which received an appreciative round of applause. The film has received mixed reviews overall. rated the film with three-out-of-five stars and wrote “On the whole, Kannappa triumphs largely due to its mythological appeal and a goosebumps-inducing final 20 minutes.[…] While the film’s lengthy runtime and the relatively low pre-release buzz in the Hindi belt are minor drawbacks, the film holds the potential to surprise, provided it garners strong word of mouth.” Paul Nicodemus of gave 3/5 stars and wrote “Directed by Mukesh Kumar Singh, Kannappa is a sincere attempt at retelling revered lore with visual grandeur. […] While the film hits the dramatic notes effectively, some of the emotional layers, particularly around Thinnadu’s inner conflict and relationships, could have been explored with more depth.” Kirubhakar Purushothaman of gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote “While the core story of Kannappa occupies only about one-third of the film’s runtime, the war and the romance take up the rest. There is a lot in Kannappa that echoes SS Rajamouli’s . […] With such decent performances, the film could’ve relied more on visuals and trimmed down the long monologues that feel like straight lifts from past iterations of the story.” Rishil Jogani of gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote “The devotional tale has a stirring climax but is hampered by a slow first half, weak visual effects, and uneven storytelling. It shall appeal to Shiva devotees but the lacklustre pacing and the shallow subplots will not let the content fly beyond its limited target audience.” Sanjay Ponnappa of gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote “Kannappa falters when it comes to direction, screenplay, and execution. […] Kannappa has its fair share of drawbacks, but from a devotional perspective, it manages to tap into the right emotions by the end.” Swaroop Kodur of gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote “Kannappa remains incoherent for most parts, and the disjointed storytelling leaves a lasting dent in it. If the unimaginative world-building, compounded by some high-level hammy acting, becomes its chief shortcoming then the lack of narrative urgency damages things further.” Aditya Devulapally of gave 2/5 stars and wrote “Kannappa is less about Shiva and more about the makers trying very hard to mount a legacy project. […] What could have been a compelling modern retelling of faith and transformation becomes a bloated star showcase dressed in mythological cosplay.” Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of wrote ” had a moving legend to build upon — a tale of unwavering faith and sacrifice. But what it needed was not more star power or visual gloss, but storytelling rooted in emotional clarity and cultural texture. In striving for grandeur, it forgets to tell the story that matters.” After eleven days of its release, the film has grossed worldwide.</p>