Nani as social reformer in Rahul Sankrityan’s ‘Shyam Singha Roy’

The teaser of director Rahul Sankrityan’s Shyam Singha Roy (SSR), starring Nani, Sai Pallavi, Krithi Shetty, Madonna Sebastian and Rahul Ravindran, unveiled on Thursday morning, hints at a period drama that takes place in Kolkata. The film is scheduled to release in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada on December 24.

The teaser offers a glimpse into the story written by Satyadev Janga. A voiceover describes the plight of women who are forced into the devadasi tradition and exploited. Nani essays the title role of a Bengali writer who challenges exploitation and works towards social reforms. The teaser also shows Nani’s other character, Vasu, romancing Krithi Shetty, and Sai Pallavi is seen dancing in a temple sporting a ferocious look akin to Goddess Kali.

Rahul Sankrityan had earlier directed Taxiwaala (2014). SSR is produced by Venkat Boyanapalli of Niharika Entertainments. The project is high on visual effects, has cinematography by Sanu John Varghese, music by Mickey J Meyer, production design by Avinash Kolla, editing by Naveen Nooli.

At a media interaction following the unveiling of the teaser, Nani revealed that the character Shyam Singha Roy is born to a Telugu mother and Bengali father, and that the film is essentially a love story.

The film marks the second collaboration between Sai Pallavi and Nani, after Middle Class Abbayi (2017), and also stars Murali Sharma, Abhinav Gomatam, Jishu Sen Gupta, Leela Samson, Manish Wadwa and Barun Chanda. Much of the Kolkata portions were filmed at an elaborate set put up in Hyderabad earlier this year.

The team has stepped up its promotions in the wake of a stiff box office race. Mid-December onwards, a host of big-budget Telugu films are lined up for release, beginning with Pushpa – The Rise directed by Sukumar and starring Allu Arjun and Rashmika Mandanna. December 24 will also witness the release of the sports drama Ghani, directed by Kiran Korrapati and starring Varun Tej.