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58-432: Ashta Chamma ( transl.   A four-player board game ) is a 2008 Indian Telugu -language romantic comedy film written and directed by Mohana Krishna Indraganti . The film stars Nani , Swathi Reddy , Srinivas Avasarala , and Bhargavi , with Tanikella Bharani in a supporting role. An adaptation of Oscar Wilde 's play The Importance of Being Earnest , the film deals with four quirky characters interwoven in

116-672: A lead actor with the 1965 film Thene Manasulu and went on to star in films such as Sakshi (1967), which won critical acclaim at the Tashkent film festival in 1968. In 1972, he starred in Pandanti Kapuram , which garnered the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu for that year. He has essayed roles across different genres including mythological, drama, western , fantasy, action, spy and historical films. Krishna

174-482: A compromise with her aunt by demanding that her husband's name must be Mahesh. Mandira Devi relents and starts the hunt for a groom, though in vain. Their neighbour, Anand, promises to help Lavanya by finding a seemingly perfect "Mahesh". As all hope seems gone, Anand meets someone named Mahesh in a bar. After befriending him and "testing" him, Anand introduces Mahesh to Lavanya, and the couple seem destined to be together forever. One day, Lavanya reveals her obsession for

232-450: A friend called "Mahesh" for business, he goes to Hyderabad and enjoys to his heart's content as Mahesh himself. Upon hearing this, Anand sympathises with Rambabu and stays loyal to him. Lavanya arranges for Rambabu to meet her aunt, to discuss marriage. Mandira Devi insults and misinterprets Rambabu for a roadside Romeo pretending to be rich to cheat Lavanya. She drives him out. Anand advises Rambabu to not make further moves until he devises

290-459: A management graduate from Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad , previously worked for UTV Software Communications . While Kalyani Malik was hired to compose the music and the background score, Marthand K. Venkatesh was chosen as the film's editor . The film is named after Ashta Chamma , a game from the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh . The game, which is otherwise known as Ludo ,

348-423: A misunderstanding of cheating as they both love "Mahesh". Rambabu and Anand enter the room, and the women eventually understand that there is no "Mahesh". Disheartened and angry, Lavanya leaves. As there are no buses back to Hyderabad until the next day, she stays back for the day. To stop Lavanya from leaving, Anand calls Mandira who just returned from a trip and is oblivious to Lavanya's eloping. A stressed Mandira

406-435: A number other than 4 or 8 (namely 1, 2, or 3). Depending on the number rolled, the player can move one (or more) of their pawns that many number of squares on the board. Each player has a fixed path to move pawns, which is in an anti-clockwise direction. The path for Player 1 is given in the example diagram. Each player's piece must completely traverse the outer squares before moving into the inner squares. The tokens enter

464-426: A plan. Anand suddenly goes to Lakkavaram to meet Varalakshmi. Anand introduces himself as Mahesh, Rambabu's friend from Hyderabad. Varalakshmi who has been fantasising about him through her brother's stories of him, falls for Anand. Varalakshmi calls Rambabu to tell that Mahesh has come. Rambabu, initially confused, catches on, and warns Anand to leave his sister alone, and strictly instructs Ammaji to keep an eye on

522-452: A player can move Two tokens opposite of the closing square and by throwing 2 one can declare Two tokens finishing the race. As 1 doesn't exist. But making two tokens stand opposite the clearance square also puts the player at higher risk as the opponent can kill two tokens at one time and they have to do the whole race again. Or Is considered as 12 and gets a bonus to throw again. In ashta chamma played by Telugu people of Andhra Pradesh. For

580-445: A player to win, they must have all their pawns in the center square. This game has several intricate rules which need to be followed. Although there are several variations of this game, the following rules are for the standard implementation: 1. A player casts the shells to determine the number of square their pawns can move. If a player has cast 1,2 or 3, then their needs to choose one of their pawns and move it that many squares along

638-443: A player's pawn to progress into the inner squares, they should have "hit" at least one of their opponent's pawns. This condition is imposed on the player and not on his pawn. For example, even if one of the player's pawns has hit one of the opponent's, then all their other pawns will be eligible to enter the inner square. If it so happens that a player cannot move any of their pawns because they have not "hit" any of their opponents, then

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696-586: A romantic narration. Upon release, the film received positive reviews and box office success. Swathi won the Filmfare Award and Nandi Award for Best Actress. The movie starts with an introduction of the ardent female fans of actor Mahesh Babu , who turn into an enraged frenzy when he gets married. Lavanya is the craziest of them all. She's caught up on marrying Mahesh, despite her aunt, Mandira Devi, repeatedly telling her that it's impossible. Lavanya pays no heed and stays depressed for days. She eventually reaches

754-721: A slot in the highly competitive family hero league and a National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu . At this time, Krishna established his production house, Padmalaya Movies and produced several big-budget films such as Agni Pariksha (1970), Mosagallaku Mosagadu (1971), Pandanti Kapuram (1972) and Devudu Chesina Manushulu (1973). With his second wife Vijaya Nirmala, Krishna set up another production house called Vijaya Krishna movies, and produced some critically acclaimed films, including Meena (1973) and Devadasu (1974). Krishna broke many records with his 100th film Alluri Seetarama Raju (1974) under his home banner Padmalaya Studios. The biographical action film won

812-417: A turn to roll the cowrie shells. The mouth of the shell landing upwards has a value of 1 and downwards has a value of 0. However, if every shell shows a value of 0, then the value of the roll is 8 and if all of them shows a value of 1, then the value of the roll is 4. Therefore, the possible values are 1, 2, 3, 4 and 8. Casting 4 or 8 gives the player an additional turn, which can continue until that player rolls

870-458: A village called Lakkavaram. Rambabu is the idolised village head where the people of the village treat him as a god. His only family after his father's death, is Varalakshmi (the woman in Mahesh's wallet), who he adores. Varalakshmi has a caretaker called Ammaji. Rambabu is tired of the godly image that he maintains and the burdening responsibilities. Whenever he craves for a break, on the ruse of meeting

928-486: Is "killed" and the player gets an extra turn to play. The killed token returns to its starting home square and has to go round all over again. In crossed boxes, killing is not possible. When a token reaches the square left of its home square, it further moves up into the inner squares and now moves in clockwise direction. However the tokens enter the inner squares, only when at least one of the opponent's tokens are killed. Otherwise they keep circling around until at least one of

986-537: Is Anasuya. She used to take her baby boy to a railway station to show trains. One day, at the railway station, she sees Superstar Krishna . Starstruck, she leaves the baby on a bench to get an autograph. When she returns, the baby is gone. Afraid of consequences, Anasuya leaves town and eventually settles down in Lakkavaram as Ammaji. She reminisces of the beautiful baby boy and a warm, soft pink towel she last saw him in. Rambabu freaks out when he hears this and asks about

1044-454: Is called by various names in different languages in different regions of India. This list shows the name, the language and then the region: Chowka bhara normally has a 5x5 square board and four players, but one can also increase the number of squares depending on the number of players to any odd number squared (for example, 11x11). Assuming the size of the board is NxN (with N being odd), then each player will have N-1 pawns. The 5x5 version

1102-477: Is consoled by her best friend Amrutha. Mandira decides to visit Lakkavaram. Meanwhile, Rambabu also makes an offer to Sarva Sarma to change his name to Mahesh traditionally. Sarva Sharma reveals that Anand asked for the same. An angry Rambabu fights Anand and warns him to leave the name and Varalakshmi for good. As Anand is leaving Lakkavaram, Varalakshmi understands her feelings for Anand and they reconcile. Mandira reaches Lakkavaram. She sees Rambabu's home, observes

1160-408: Is shown in the example diagram. Four players each have four pawns, starting at different positions at the four crossed squares at the outermost ring. The game is controlled by throwing four cowry shells and counting how many are 'as it is' versus those that land 'inverted': if all four shells land inverted it is called "ashta" and if all land as it is then it is called a "chamma". Each player takes

1218-402: The National Film Award -winning Grahanam (2005) and followed it up with Mayabazaar (2006). While working on the characters, the story became more female-centric and thereby departed from Wilde's narration. After working on the story's draft of 225 pages for about two months, he began fine-tuning it for another few months. The film was produced by Ram Mohan, his first production venture. Mohan,

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1276-641: The National Film Award for Best Lyrics for the song 'Telugu Veera Levara' penned by the late poet Sri Sri . The film also won the Nandi Award for Best Feature Film and was screened at the International Film Festival of India and the Tashkent Film Festival. The film ran in theatres for 175 days and emerged as the highest-grossing Telugu film of the year. Such was the success of Alluri Seetarama Raju that none of his next 14 films could match

1334-412: The 48 films they did together. In addition to Sakshi (1967), Krishna and Vijaya Nirmala collaborated on Manchi Kutumbam (1968), Vichitra Kutumbam (1969), Akka Chellelu (1970), Mosagallaku Mosagadu (1971) and Pandanti Kapuram (1972). Krishna became famous across the nation when his family drama Pandanti Kapuram , which ran for over 175 days in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, earned him

1392-554: The National Front and was at the pinnacle of his political career. By a margin of 71,000 votes, he defeated Bolla Bulliramaiah, the TDP's incumbent MP . However, Krishna was defeated by Bulliramaiah in the ensuing 1991 election by a margin of 47,000 votes. On 14 November 2022, Krishna suffered a heart attack and was rushed to a hospital in Hyderabad. His health deteriorated and he was put on

1450-542: The Telugu silver screen. Though action films were his forte, Krishna also acted in family drama films such as Marapurani Katha (1967), Atthagaaru Kotthakodalu (1968) and Undamma Bottu Pedatha (1968). He also worked with established actors, such as N. T. Rama Rao and Akkineni Nageswara Rao , in films such as Stree Janma (1967), Niluvu Dopidi (1968), Manchi Kutumbam (1968), Vichitra Kutumbam (1969), Akka Chellelu (1970) during this period. Krishna and Vijaya Nirmala complimented each other in

1508-419: The back of it. It reads "Mahesh Babu". Amrutha named him Mahesh Babu before he was kidnapped. Lavanya is ecstatic and accepts Rambabu (Mahesh). Anand and Varalakshmi decide to get married with no objections. Then, at Rambabu's (Mahesh) order, Anasuya accepts Sarva Sarma marriage proposal. The movie ends with an interesting turn as Mandira is obsessed with the actor and name Pawan Kalyan . Indraganti debuted with

1566-412: The blanket again. Rambabu rushes to open an old trunk and pulls out a towel. Anasuya confirms that it is the same towel. Rambabu reveals what his father told him on his deathbed. Rambabu was adopted. A suspicious man sat with a baby Rambabu on a train, and his father shoed him away, eventually adopting the baby. Rambabu is elated that he found his birth mother Anasuya. Mandira clarifies that Anasuya (Ammaji)

1624-405: The board only after a Chamma or Ashta is thrown. Since each cowrie carries 2 points, 2 tokens for Chamma and 4 tokens for Ashta are entered on the board. The tokens travel anti-clockwise in outer squares, clockwise in inner squares and finally land up in central square (home), with a throw of Ashta or Chamma. If a player's token lands on a square occupied by opponent's token, then the opponent's token

1682-422: The board. The rules of playing Senior board is same as that of Junior board. When most of the tokens are dead, it is possible to bring back the dead tokens. For 8, 1 token, for Ashta, 4 tokens and for Chamma 2 tokens can be brought back. Cases when cowries are cast: In some places there is no move of 1. If you throw 1 as is and 7 inverted ; you move 11 squares and this is also a bonus chance. In some places

1740-458: The both of them till he comes home. Meanwhile, Anand learns about Varalakshmi's secret obsession for the name "Mahesh". Anand, for Varalakshmi, wants to change his name to Mahesh and meets Sarva Sarma, an old bachelor priest who loves Ammaji. He agrees to pay 2 lakh rupees to conduct the rituals. A furious Rambabu rushes to Lakkavaram and warns Anand off his sister. Anand asks Lavanya to elope to Lakkavaram. Upon meeting Varalakshmi, chaos ensues due

1798-578: The country. He was elected as a Member of Parliament for the Congress party in 1989. In 1997, he received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award – South in addition to Honorary doctorate from Andhra University in 2008. He died on 15 November 2022 due to cardiac arrest. Krishna began his film career with minor roles in films such as Kula Gothralu (1961), Padandi Mundhuku (1962), and Paruvu Prathishta (1963). He debuted as

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1856-425: The dice. If on the second turn they get a 3, then the player can move one of their pawns 4 squares and one of their other pawns 3 squares. They can of course choose to move the same pawn (4+3) 7 squares if they want to. This argument can be extended to the player getting 3 or more consecutive turns. 2. "Hit": Pawns of two players cannot exist in the same square, other than a "Safe" square, which are marked with an X in

1914-399: The double as one pawn and make it move to one of the values on the dice. 4. Double vs Single: It is not possible for a single pawn to "hit" a double. A player cannot move their single pawn to the same square as an opponent's double. A player cannot move past an opponent's double for 1 move. However, a double can "hit" a single pawn, and make it move back to its home square. If 2 singles are in

1972-444: The double. This rule is applicable for every opponent of the player in the game. This rule is not valid once the double is formed on the inner squares. For the player forming the double, there are two choices on his subsequent moves. They can "break" the double by moving only one of the pawns in it, or keep the double and advance the pawns together. In case a player has got multiple turns (as they may have thrown 4s and 8s), they can treat

2030-414: The figure. For a 5x5 board this is simply the starting positions of each of the players and the center square. However, for higher dimension boards, more safe squares can be added symmetrically across the board. So if the pawn of player X lands on the same square of a pawn of player Y, then player X has "hit" player Y. Player Y's pawn is returned to its starting square and this pawn needs to start over. For

2088-565: The government of India awarded him Padma Bhushan in 2009. Krishna’s last major movie to be released was Sri Sri in 2016 after which he bid adieu to films and had stayed away from the limelight. Krishna joined the Congress Party under the leadership of Rajiv Gandhi . He ran in the 1989 elections from the Parliament constituency in Eluru and won the seat. At the same time, NTR was leading

2146-535: The hype for the classic, and they hardly made a mark at the box office. With star heroine Jaya Prada , Krishna worked in about 47 movies. They were paired for the first time on screen with the 1976 film Shri Rajeshwari Vilas Coffee Club . He then worked with her on Eenati Bandham Yenatido (1977), Kurukshetram (1977), Agent Gopi (1978), Kotta Alludu (1979), Rahasya Gudachari (1981), Ooruki Monagadu (1981), Jataadu (1981), and Nivuru Gappina Nippu (1982) among others. Krishna and Sridevi were among

2204-513: The last pawn left), the player will lose their turn. Ashta Chamma plays a pivotal role in the 2006 Indian art house film Vanaja . In 2008, a Tollywood comedy film, Ashta Chamma , was released, which was written and directed by Mohan Krishna Indraganti . The film deals with four quirky protagonists whose tales are interwoven in a romantic narration. Krishna (Telugu actor) Ghattamaneni Siva Rama Krishna Murthy (31 May 1943 – 15 November 2022), known mononymously as Krishna ,

2262-461: The most successful on-screen couples in Tollywood, having acted in about 31 films together. Some of their most memorable works are Burripalem Bullodu (1979), Gharana Donga (1980), Maama Allulla Sawaal (1980), Ram Robert Rahim (1980), Chuttalunnaru Jagratha (1980), and Maharajasri Mayagadu (1988). Krishna redeemed himself with Paadi Pantalu (1976) and went on to headline and bankroll

2320-441: The mythological film titled Kurukshetram (1977). The film's announcement took the Telugu film industry by storm and also paved way for a star war with N. T. Rama Rao , who went on to make Daana Veera Soora Karna (1977) along the same lines. Following this, Krishna made a few films that directly attacked NTR, setting off the rivalry between their respective fans. His personality set him apart from his contemporaries and earned him

2378-454: The name of "Mahesh" and shows him a tattoo she got of the name. Mahesh is in utter shock and disbelief that Lavanya loves him because of his name. That night, a drunk Mahesh shares this with Anand. The next morning, Anand finds a picture of a young woman in Mahesh's wallet, with a note on the back reading "Rambabu." Anand confronts Mahesh, and Mahesh reveals that his name is actually Rambabu. Rambabu narrates his story to Anand, which starts at

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2436-406: The path designated for that player. The player needs to be able to smartly choose a pawn to move, so that it optimizes their chance of winning the game. If a player has cast either a 4 or an 8, the player will have another turn to cast the dice. The player does not have to move any of their pawns until they have cast 1, 2, or 3. For example, if a player casts a 4, they will get another chance to roll

2494-446: The player will lose that turn. 3. "Double": It is possible for a player to have two of their pawns in the same square. This is called a "double". If a player forms a double on the outer square, then it blocks the opponent's pawns behind them for one move; i.e. if an opponent's pawn crosses the double, then that move is voided and the opponent loses a turn. However, on the next turn for the same opponent, their pawn can go past (or "cross")

2552-462: The same square, then the double can "hit" only one of the singles. the other single is not affected at all. 5. Reaching the central square: A pawn needs to reach the central square exactly. For example, if a pawn is 3 squares away from the center and the player throws a 4, then that pawn cannot be moved. If that is the only pawn left for the player to move (which may be because of a variety of reasons such as being blocked by double, or by virtue of being

2610-637: The same token or some other token can be played. If a player throws either a Chamma or an Ashta three times consecutively during his turn, he is out, and cannot use any of the moves. If a player has cut once, all the coins can move into the inner circle, not necessary for every coin to cut opponent. When most of the tokens are dead, it is possible to bring back the dead tokens. For Ashta, 2 tokens and for Chamma 1 token can be brought back. Cowries and their values: In Senior board (8x4=32) tokens of four distinct colours are used. Since each cowry carries 1 point, 4 tokens for Chamma and 8 tokens for Ashta are entered on

2668-460: The site and property, understands that Rambabu is actually wealthy, and accepts Rambabu. Lavanya's feelings, however, have not changed. She does not want to forgive him. As Mandira and Lavanya argue, Ammaji comes back from a pilgrimage (after Rambabu came back, she went on a pilgrimage for peace). Mandira recognises Ammaji, threatens to hit her with a coconut, and enquires about the baby which she had apparently stolen. Ammaji reveals that her real name

2726-562: The sobriquet ‘daring and dashing hero’. 1979 turned out to be an eventful year for Krishna, with six of his films becoming money spinners at the box office. 1982 was yet another milestone year for Krishna as he launched Padmalaya Studios and produced his 200th film Eenadu . Krishna and Vijayashanti starred together in some hit films such as Krishnavataram (1982), Agni Parvatam (1985), Brahmastram (1986), Sardar Krishnama Naidu (1987), Donga Garu Swagatham (1987), Aswaddhama (1988) and Goonda Rajyam (1989). Krishna

2784-439: The tokens of an opponent is killed by them. Every token need not kill an opponent. Each token finishes its race when it manages to get into the home. The first player to get all his tokens into home wins the game. Whenever a Chamma or an Ashta is obtained during a throw of the shells, the player gets a bonus turn to throw the cowries. When a player cuts an opponent's token, he gets an extra turn to play. During an extra turn, either

2842-678: The unexpected super-success of Pacchani Samsaaram . But it was Varasudu , his second release in the year, which made him the cynosure of the film fraternity again. With the films Number 1 (1994) and Amma Donga (1995) he had thumping successes. Krishna produced and directed the 2004 Hindi film Ishq Hai Tumse , a remake of the Telugu film Sampangi . The same year, he played the role of Jesus in Shanti Sandesham . Andhra University felicitated Krishna with an honorary doctorate in 2008. In recognition of his contribution to Telugu film industry as an actor, director, producer and writer,

2900-441: Was also part of super hit films like Pachani Kapuram (1985), Simhasanam (1986), Khaidi Rudrayya (1986), Muddayi (1987), Goonda Rajyam (1989), Gudachari 117 (1989), Sahasame Naa Oopiri (1989) and Koduku Diddina Kapuram (1989). In the '90s, Krishna reinvented himself, playing the roles of the avuncular and ruthless gangster, big brother, and cameos in action dramas. In 1993, he came back strongly with

2958-573: Was an Indian actor, film director and film producer known for his work predominantly in Telugu cinema . In a career spanning more than five decades, he starred in over 350 films in a variety of roles. He is referred to as "Superstar" and "Nata Sekhara" in the Telugu media. In 2009, for his contributions to Indian cinema the Indian government awarded him the Padma Bhushan , the third-highest civilian award in

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3016-918: Was credited with producing many technological firsts in the Telugu film industry such as the first Cinemascope film – Alluri Seetarama Raju (1974), the first Eastmancolor film – Eenadu (1982), the first 70mm film – Simhasanam (1986), the first DTS film – Telugu Veera Levara (1995) and introducing the cowboy genre to the Telugu screen. He uniquely starred in the spy films Gudachari 116 (1966), James Bond 777 (1971), Agent Gopi (1978), Rahasya Gudachari (1981) and Gudachari 117 (1989). Krishna directed Sankharavam (1987), Mugguru Kodukulu (1988), Koduku Diddina Kapuram (1989), Bala Chandrudu (1990) and Anna Thammudu (1990), casting his son Mahesh Babu in pivotal roles. Krishna directed 17 feature films and produced many films under his Padmalaya Studios production company along with his brothers Adiseshagiri Rao and Hanumantha Rao. Krishna

3074-593: Was married twice, first to Indira Devi and subsequently to Vijaya Nirmala . He had five children in his first marriage: two sons, film producer Ramesh Babu and actor Mahesh Babu , and three daughters, Padmavathi, Manjula Ghattamaneni , and Priyadarshini. Krishna met Vijaya Nirmala on the sets of Sakshi (1967). His career began with minor roles in films such as Padandi Munduku (1962), Kula Gotralu (1962) and Paruvu-Prathishta (1963). He then acted in Thene Manasulu (1965) which changed his career. There

3132-617: Was one of the highest-paid Telugu actors during his time. He is also noted for pairing up with the same leading actress on scores of productions. He worked with Vijaya Nirmala on 48 films and with Jaya Prada on 47. He worked with major directors including Adurthi Subba Rao , V. Madhusudhana Rao , K. Viswanath , Bapu , Dasari Narayana Rao and K. Raghavendra Rao . Krishna was born on 31 May 1943 in Burripalem , Guntur district of present-day Andhra Pradesh . His parents are Ghattamaneni Nagaratnamma, Veeraraghavayya Chowdary. Krishna

3190-411: Was only Rambabu's caretaker. His real birth mother is Amrutha, Mandira's best friend. Mandira immediately phones Amrutha to tell her that they found her lost baby. Amrutha and her husband immediately come to Lakkavaram. The estranged family meet at last, and everybody is happy except Lavanya, who is still upset about Rambabu's name. Amrutha hands Lavanya a photo of baby Rambabu, and asks her to look at

3248-490: Was pressure to remove Krishna from the film owing to concerns expressed by buyers, though Adurthi was adamant about his decision. Thene Manasulu ultimately hit screens and was a resounding box office success. Krishna became a household name with the runaway success of the iconic Telugu spy film Gudachaari 116 (1966). He was also known as the Andhra James Bond after he brought many James Bond-style spy movies to

3306-416: Was released as part of the film's promotion. While Indraganti wanted Bhumika Chawla to be cast in the leading role, he chose Colours Swathi in the supporting role. However, when he was unsuccessful in hiring Chawla for the film, he promoted Swathi to the lead role. Swati held a good opinion about Indraganti, whom she thought to be quite an educated director. After confirming Swathi for the role, Indraganti

3364-529: Was scouting for three more actors to form the primary cast. During this period, Swathi completed the Tamil film, Subramaniapuram . Filmfare Awards South Nandi Awards Chowka bhara The game of Chowka Bhara is one of the oldest board games in existence, still being played in certain parts of India. There are references to this game in some ancient Indian epics like the Mahabharata . This game

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