Bhale Kodallu

Bhale Kodallu is a 1968 Telugu-language comedy film written and directed by K. Balachander. It was simultaneously filmed in Tamil as Bama Vijayam, despite being released more than a year after that. The film features an ensemble cast consisting of S. V. Ranga Rao, Sowcar Janaki, Kanchana, Jayanthi, Nagabhushanam, Ramakrishna, Chalam, Rajasree and Saraswathi.

Plot

A movie star moves into the neighbourhood where a joint family of three husbands and their wives live. Her presence sends the wives into a spending spree as they buy radios and fancy goods to keep up with their glamorous neighbour, while accusing their husbands of being too close to the star.

Cast

Credits adapted from Chitra Seema:

S. V. Ranga Rao as Narasimham
Sowcar Janaki as Parvathi
Kanchana as Seetha
Jayanthi as Rukmini
Nagabhushanam as Shankaram
Ramakrishna as Ramam
Chalam as Krishna
Rajasree as the movie star
Saraswathi as Sacchu

Production

In 1965, when K. Balachander was "just getting his bearings in the film industry", his household was excited because Sowcar Janaki, a star, was due to visit their house. This incident laid the foundation for Bhale Kodallu, which was written and directed by Balachander, and produced by S. S. Vasan under Gemini Studios. It was simultaneously filmed in Tamil as Bama Vijayam, with a slightly different cast. The final length of the film was.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by M. S. Viswanathan, while the lyrics were written by C. Narayana Reddy.

Release

Bhale Kodallu was released on 26 April 1968, over a year after Bama Vijayam.