Siva (1989 Telugu film)

Siva
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Ram Gopal Varma
Produced by	Akkineni Venkat Yarlagadda Surendra
Written by	Ram Gopal Varma Tanikella Bharani (dialogue)
Starring	Akkineni Nagarjuna Amala Raghuvaran
Music by	Ilaiyaraaja
Cinematography	S. Gopala Reddy
Edited by	Sattibabu
Production company	Annapurna Studios SS Creations
Release date	5 October 1989
Running time	145 minutes
Country	India
Language	Telugu

Siva (also spelt Shiva) is a 1989 Indian Telugu-language crime drama film written and directed by Ram Gopal Varma in his directorial debut. Produced by Akkineni Venkat and Yarlagadda Surendra under their banners of Annapurna Studios and SS Creations, Siva starred Akkineni Nagarjuna, Amala, and Raghuvaran. The film's basic plot, adapted from Bruce Lee's Way of the Dragon (1972), revolves around the conflict between college student-turned-gangster Siva and Bhavani, a reputed crime boss mentored by the politician Machiraju. Siva explores the concepts of student exploitation by anti-social elements and the impact of crowd psychology.

Varma's script was based on his experiences as a student at Siddhartha Engineering College in Vijayawada. Tanikella Bharani wrote the dialogue. Ilaiyaraaja composed Siva's soundtrack and score, and S. Gopala Reddy was its director of photography. Thota Tharani and Sattibabu were the film's art director and editor, respectively. Its principal photography began on 16 February 1989, and was completed in 55 working days. Except for three days of shooting in Madras (now Chennai), Siva was filmed in Andhra Pradesh.

Produced on a budget of ₹7.5 million, Siva was released on 5 October 1989 to critical acclaim, primarily for its technology and sound design. Although Venkat and Surendra expected the film to have average earnings, it was commercially successful; Siva completed a 100-day run in 22 centres and a 175-day run in five centres. It was screened in the mainstream section of the International Film Festival of India, held on 19 January 1990. In addition to the Filmfare Award for Best Film – Telugu, Siva won three Nandi Awards: Best Director (Varma), Best First Film of a Director, and Best Dialogue Writer (Bharani). A documentary titled Exploring Shiva after 25 Years was released on the film's silver anniversary; it is the first documentary about a Telugu film.