Okkadu

Okkadu (transl. The One) is a 2003 Indian Telugu-language sports action film co-written and directed by Gunasekhar and produced by M. S. Raju. The film stars Mahesh Babu, Bhumika Chawla and Prakash Raj.The music was composed by Mani Sharma, while the cinematography and editing were handled by Sekhar V. Joseph and A. Sreekar Prasad.

In the film, Ajay, a fiery Kabaddi player from Hyderabad, visits Kurnool for a tournament and rescues Swapna from a faction leader, Obul Reddy, who wants to marry her by force. As Ajay hides her and helps plan her escape abroad, a violent feud erupts, leading to love, loss, and a final showdown.

Okkadu was released on 15 January 2003 to positive reviews from critics. The film received praise for its acting, action sequences, and direction and became one of the highest-grossing Telugu films of the year. It has garnered eight Nandi Awards and four Filmfare Awards South, including Best Film – Telugu. It also led Mahesh Babu to achieve a major breakthrough in his career.

The film was remade in seven other languages: as Ghilli (2004) in Tamil, as Ajay (2006) in Kannada, twice in Bangladesh as Dapot (2006) and Bolona Kobul (2009), as Mate Aanidela Lakhe Phaguna (2008) in Odia, as Jor (2008) in Bengali, as Tevar (2015) in Hindi, and as Kabaddi (2021) in Sinhala.