The parallel wave in Telugu cinema didn't gain much popularity ever since the start. There were only a few filmmakers who carried this parallel wave on their shoulders. Directors like K. Vishwanath and Babu made sure that parallel and art-house cinema get popularity and also make money at the box office.
One of the best art-house films of Tollywood is Sankarabharanam, directed by K. Vishwanath. Starring Somayajulu and Manju Bhargavi in the lead roles, Sankarabharanam got released in 1980 and gained a cult status over the years. Yesterday, the film completed 40 years of its release.
When it had hit the theatres, there was no one to watch this film in the theatres and the makers thought that it would be a disaster. But as the days passed by, positive word of mouth got spread and people started flocking into the theatres. Thus, the film ran for more than 100 days across many centers.
Sankarabharanam also got premiered in various film festivals like the Besancon Film Festival of France, International Film Festival of India, Asia Pacific Film Festival and Moscow International Film Festival. It won four National Awards and five Nandi Awards. The film got later dubbed into Tamil and Malayalam. It was a hit in those languages too.
