The Big Five who made Kushi irresistible

On this day in 2001, a film that scorched the screens for weeks on end was released. It's one of the most well-made films ever. It's 'Kushi'. IndiaGlitz reviews the Big Five of this stupendous hit. Many might have found this movie a bit cracked, but even they will tell you that 'Kushi' can be loved or hated but it is something that can't be ignored. Read on..

Pawan Kalyan

No Pawan Kalyan, no 'Kushi'. He maddened the audience (please note, it's not just the fans) to such an extent that those watching it for the first time couldn't fully appreciate the other great elements of the movie. Such was the mania that Pawan generated with his sheer style, dialogue-delivery, whacky fights, and a magical screen presence that one had to watch the movie all over again to ensure that Bhoomika and others got registered in one's mind. That's what you call true power, Power Star-style. It was a case of Power Star over-powering everyone else.

We had seen him consolidate himself as a style icon with 'Badri' itself, but it was 'Kushi' which really announced the rage that his style could create. Forget a movie changing the tastes of a generation (for example, Nuvve Kavali), here was a hero who changed the way heroism was perceived.

Mani Sharma

He is easily the film's second hero. If you can't imagine a Roja without an AR Rahman, you can't imagine 'Kushi' without Mani either. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that one or another song from this movie was learnt by heart by at least one person from every urban household because of the sound of Melody Brahma's music. As for rural AP, Gajja ghallu mannadi ro.. was a run-away hit. Pawan's concept for the song Ye mera jahaan.. worked wonders. Cheyliya cheliya.. was made memorable by AM Ratnam's profound lyrics. Ammaye sannaga.. was an anthem, to say the least.

He had just given a blockbuster album just a few months ago (you would have guessed it already - it's Narasimha Naidu) and when the audio of 'Kushi' was out, the music lovers were stunned all over again. It's hard to recall a non-AR Rahman film where the background music stylized the scenes to such an extent. Outstanding wouldn't do justice to Mani's work.

SJ Suryah

The Telugu audience had had an idea of this guy, thanks to Vali. Having seen that impeccable show by Ajith, the discerning audience had expected a superb act from Pawan. SJ Suryah ensured it. If anything, this maverick director only bettered the original film (starring Vijay and Jyothika) by many more times. Overnight, Tollywood got up and took notice of this man.

The biggest contribution of this director is that he made one-line stories started seeming sexier. The screenplay was so full of fun. Each scene was a witty episode in itself. The audience were suddenly in love with stylized, coming-of-age rom-coms, which didn't come in good number later on. If, despite not delivering worthy content in the last 15 years (Nani and Komaram Puli were disasters) SJ Suryah still commands respect among the Telugu audience, it's because of this rule-breaker of a rom-com.

Bhoomika Chawla

Unarguably, Bhoomika put up one of the best performances among all female acts. What Soundarya was to Raja, Bhoomika was to Kushi. Her subtle acting needed repeated viewing to be appreciated. Even to this day, one may find Pawan going over-board here and there, but Bhoomika's acting is consistently fabulous in every single scene. Right from saying 'I am sorry' in an ultra-cute way, to putting up that romantic expression before Cheliya cheliya.., the actress did it all. No wonder she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress.

PC Sriram

Suffice it to say that PC Sriram captured everything from the right angle. It was only after Kushi released that the young generation took note of this brilliant cinematographer's previous great works like Nayakudu and Geethanjali. What is striking is that his cinematography brought in the essence of Kollywoodish taking and adapted it to a style liked by the Telugu audience. But for his cinematography, everything would have seemed less stylish in this film. Even Pawan Kalyan. Many even in Bollywood must have taken note of PC's gorgeous frames in 'Kushi'.