Arundhati (2009 film)

Arundhati
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Kodi Ramakrishna
Produced by	M Shyam Prasad Reddy
Written by	Chintapalli Ramana
Starring	Anushka Shetty Sonu Sood Arjan Bajwa Sayaji Shinde
Music by	Koti
Cinematography	K. K. Senthil Kumar
Edited by	Marthand K Venkatesh
Production company	Mallemala Entertainments
Release date	16 January 2009 (2009-01-16)
Country	India
Language	Telugu
Budget	₹130 million (equivalent to ₹230 million or US$3.6 million in 2016)
Box office	₹550 million (equivalent to ₹970 million or US$15 million in 2016)(worldwide nett)

Arundhati (Telugu: అరుంధతి) is a 2009 Indian Telugu dark fantasy film directed by Kodi Ramakrishna and written by Chintapalli Ramana, starring Anushka Shetty, Sonu Sood, Arjan Bajwa and Sayaji Shinde. The film was released on 16 January 2009 to positive reviews and emerged as a commercial success, also became second highest grossing Telugu film of all-time. Owing to its success, it was later dubbed into Tamil and Malayalam with the same title and in Oriya as Mantrasakti. The movie was also dubbed in Hindi as Arundhati–Ek Anokhi Kahani by Sumeet Arts. It is remade in Bengali as Arundhati starring Koel Mallick.

Arundhati (Anushka Shetty) is the great-great-granddaughter of the Raja of Gadwal, Mahasamsthan. Arrangements are being made for her marriage. Arundhati is the first female to be born since her great grandmother and is especially revered in the family. She then goes to Gadwal where her grandfather resides, to visit him. Her grandfather, the head of the family, talks to her with respect as if she were older than him. She receives a misleading phone call in her fiance Rahul's (Arjan Bajwa) voice asking her to come to the fort of Gadwall, where she faces a horrible revelation. Learning the story from an aged servant maid, Chandramma (Manorama), Arundhati comes to know that she is a look alike of her great-grandmother Arundhati/Jejjamma.

Jejjama is an expert in painting, dancing and martial arts. Her elder sister is married to her cousin Pasupathi (Sonu Sood). Pasupathi, a womanizer, rapes the women he likes and kills those who object. While Jejjama was still a young girl, he raped and killed her blind dance teacher while a horrified Jejjama watched through the peephole. Jejjama, furious, demands that he be killed but the King tells her that this would ruin her sister's life. Hearing this, Jejjamma's sister commits suicide. The people of Gadwal furiously thrash Pasupathi and tie him to his horse. Though Gadwal celebrates his death, he is saved by Aghoras (saints who practice the dark arts). Pasupathi masters the Tantric arts and returns to Gadwal many years later to exact his revenge.