The shooting of charming beauty Charmi's Mangala, directed by Osho Tulasiram, maker of heroine-oriented blockbuster Mantra, and produced under the banner of Mantra Entertainment, commenced at Annapoorna Studios, Hyderabad with producer Bellamkonda Suresh clapping the muhurat shot on Charmi. Sairam Shankar switched on the camera, while Sukumar did the formal first shot direction. I knew Tulasi Ram from the time he was an assistant director. I never thought that Mantra would be a big hit and when I attended the Mantra's opening shot, all the cast and crew appeared in a depressed mood. Later, the movie proved to be a trendsetter. I wish the same for Mangala, Sukumar said. Charmi and Tulasi Ram spoke during the occasion. Music is by Vishwa; cinematography is by Sivendra. Story and screenplay are by the director himself. The cast includes Pradeep Rawat, Yuvaraj, Chitram Seenu, Subash and others.

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Telugu film comedian Padmanabham, who also produced and directed some Telugu films, has died of heart attack. He was 79.

Padmanabham suffered a heart attack Saturday morning at his Chennai residence. In the evening, he was pronounced dead by doctors who attended on him.

Basavaraja Venkata Padmanabha Rao, better known as Padmanabham, was born Aug 21, 1931, in Simhadripuram village in Kadapa district. He worked in theatre before he was introduced in films.

His death comes a few days after another character actor, Gummadi Venkateshwara Rao, passed away.

Padmanabhan got a break in films through 'Krishna Prema' in 1943. He gained prominence after acting in 'Maya Lokam,' directed by Gudavalli Ramabrahmam.

He acted in almost 400 movies, including many superhits like 'Pathala Bhairvai' and 'Bhadra,' released in 2005. His last film was 'Tata Birla Madyalo Laila,' which was released in 2006.

He was very popular as a comedy artiste for almost two decades from 1960 to 1980.

Padmanabham produced many films, including 'Sri Sri Maryada Ramanna', 'Potti Pleaderu'. His major hits include 'Shavukaru', 'Patala Bhairavi', 'Paramanandayya Sishyula Katha', 'Kathanayika Molla', 'Dasara Bullodu', 'Iddaru Mitrulu'.

He won the Andhra Pradesh government's award for best comedian and the prestigious Allu Ramalingaiah National Award.

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Telugu youth icon Allu Arjun's Arya 2, a sequel to his Arya (2004), was released in around 65 screens in Kerala last Friday and according to sources, the film has grossed Rs. 67 lakhs in three days. The film is now running to packed houses even in smaller stations. "Allu Arjun is turning out to be a phenomenon in Kerala. Arya 2 has taken the best opening of 2010 in Kerala, especially in Malabar area. The film is sure going to be a super hit," the distributor Divya Pictures Ravi was quoted as saying. It is noteworthy that Tamil star Ajith's new film Aasal, released last Friday worldwide, could only release in Kochi area in Kerala. Starring Kajal Aggarwal, Navdeep and Shraddha Das in major roles, Arya 2 is produced by Dil Raju and Aditya Babu under the banner of Sri Venkataramana Creations. Tamil actor Arya plays the villain. Music is by Gorantla Krishna, while cinematography is by Muralikrishna. Check out: Allu Arjun photo gallery VPOST : 06

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The team of Telugu film 'Namo Venkatesa' along with Radio Mirchi, Hallmark, ZeeTelugu and Southscope magazine Monday announced a 'Be Positive Dream Girl' contest to reach out to individuals who like to showcase their talent and get a chance to become film star.

The winner will get to act in a Telugu film, the organisers said. Popular actor Venkatesh will declare the winners selected by a panel of celebrity judges Feb 14.

'This contest is meant to reach out to all talented cinema lovers looking for a break. We hope to bring to the forefront a bright new aspiring star who is Very Mirchi with a Be positive attitude,' said Deepti Jasti, Head of Programming, Radio Mirchi.

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Year 2009 may not have ended great for Nayanthara as she had only a single release Aadhavan. But she has started 2010 with a bang. Her Telugu film Adurs with Junior NTR and Malayalam film Bodyguard with Dileep releasing in January will ensure that. Also in 2010 Nayantara will be expanding her territory of rule to Karnataka as well. Nayantara will be doing her first Kannada film this year opposite Kannada superstar Upendra . The new yet to be titled Kannada film will be mega budget film of course and will be shot across exotic locales abroad. Presently Nayantara is busy shooting for Simha starring Balakrishna in Telugu and Boss Enkira Bhaskaran with Arya in Tamil. vpost : 19

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