| Palletoori Pilla | |
| Story: | B. A. Subba Rao Tapi Dharma Rao P. Adinarayana Rao |
| Screenplay: | B. A. Subba Rao |
| Producer: | B. A. Subba Rao Raja Saheb of Mirzapuram |
| Director: | B. A. Subba Rao |
| Starring: | N. T. Rama Rao Akkineni Nageswara Rao Anjali Devi |
| Music: | P. Adinarayana Rao |
| Cinematography: | D. S. Kotnis |
| Editing: | K. A. Sreeramulu |
| Studio: | Sobhanachala & B. A. Subba Rao Joint Productions |
| Distributor: | Poorna films |
| Runtime: | 176 minutes |
| Country: | India |
| Language: | Telugu |
Palletoori Pilla is a 1950 Indian Telugu-language film produced and directed by B. A. Subba Rao under the Sobhanachala & B. A. Subba Rao Joint Productions banner. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Anjali Devi, with music was composed by P. Adinarayana Rao. The film was loosely based on the English play Pizaro by Richard Brinsley Sheridan.
Palletoori Pilla was the first lead role for Rama Rao who had earlier acted in a minor role in Mana Desam (1949). It was blockbuster and was the highest grossing Telugu film of the year, and both Subba Rao and Rama Rao gained a good reputation from it. The film also marks the first collaboration between Nageswara Rao and Rama Rao who further acted in 14 films together thereafter.
The film was dubbed into Tamil as Grama Penn which became a hit. It was later remade in Hindi as Insaniyat (1955).
Santha is a beautiful village girl who grew up with her cousin Vasanth. Vasanth has loved Santha without her knowledge since childhood. A dangerous dacoit, Kampanna Dora, frequently raids and loots the villages in the nearby territory.
Once, during their attack, Santha slaps Kampanna's principal associate, Jayanth, convincingly arguing regarding their lifestyle and livelihood. The incident makes Jayanth reform and decide to leave the realm when a rift arises between Jayanth and Kampanna, and he is imprisoned. But Jayanth absconds with the help of Thatha, a casuist in their squad, and reaches Santha's village.
At that juncture, he shields Vasanth and Santha against an onslaught of bulls when the villagers embrace and shelter him. After that, Jayanth aegis and develops self-defense skills in them when Santha starts loving him. Knowing this, an enraged Vasanth tries to knock out Jayanth, but after learning Santha's real intention, he couples them up. Right now, Kampanna traipses to destroy the village by slaughtering Thatha when the villagers crush him.
Time passes, and Santha gives birth to a baby boy. They are presently celebrating a folk festival when Kampanna ploys and captures Jayanth. Then, Santha denounces Vasanth when he affirms to safeguard her husband and proceeds towards Kampanna's fort. Meanwhile, anxious Santha also searches for Jayanth when Kampanna's men catch the baby. At last, Vasanth shields them by sacrificing his life and forgives Kampanna, making him repent. Finally, the movie ends, and it is shown that Vasanth's soul blesses the villagers.
Cast according to the song book
Music composed by P. Adinarayana Rao. Music released on Audio Company.
| Song Title | Lyrics | Singers | length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Mahatma" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Ghantasala | 1:35 | |
| "Premamaya" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Pithapuram | 2:51 | |
| "Shantavanti Pilla" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Ghantasala | 2:49 | |
| "Dheerakampana" | P. Adinarayana Rao | Jikki | 2:42 | |
| "Vaddura Baboi" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Pithapuram | 2:51 | |
| "Chinnari Papayi" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Jikki | 3:05 | |
| "Vuntenemi" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Jikki | 2:26 | |
| "Chitapata Chinukulu" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Pithapuram, Jikki | 2:08 | |
| "Palleseemala Bratuke" | Tapi Dharma Rao | Jikki | 2:58 |
This was the first movie of the NTR and ANR combination. Initially, Raghuramayya was selected for the hero's role and later he was replaced by ANR. This is the first film of N. T. Rama Rao in a lead role. His second film was Shavukaru, which was shot after Palletoori Pilla released earlier. For an action sequence, N. T. Rama Rao refused to let the director employ a stunt double and fought with a violent bull himself. The director had told Rama Rao only to catch the horns of the Australian bull he had to fight (to save Santha and Vasanth), but Rama Rao literally fought with the savage bull which ultimately threw him to the ground, fracturing his right hand. Despite being told to take rest, Rama Rao reported for the shoot the very next day. Two fractures later, Rama Rao was still shooting, wearing full sleeves to cover the bandages.[1] [2]
The film ran for more than 100 days in 7 centers in Andhra Pradesh.[3]