Thandel

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Thandel (“captain of the boat”) is a 2025 Telugu romantic action drama written and directed by Chandoo Mondeti and produced by Bunny Vasu under Geetha Arts, starring Naga Chaitanya and Sai Pallavi. It draws on a real 2018 incident in which fishermen from Srikakulam strayed into Pakistani waters and were arrested. It was released on 7 February 2025, runs 151 minutes and has been streaming on Netflix since 7 March 2025.

What the story is about

Raju, a fisherman from Matchilesam near Srikakulam, is the “thandel”, the leader of his boat’s crew, as his father was. He and Sathya have loved each other since childhood, and she lives in constant worry about the months he spends at sea off the Gujarat coast. On one trip a storm drives the crew into Pakistani waters, Raju and his men are arrested, and the film follows their imprisonment and Sathya’s efforts at home to bring them back. The story unfolds largely from Sathya’s point of view, The Hindu notes.

Cast and crew

• Naga Chaitanya as Raju
• Sai Pallavi as Sathya
• Aadukalam Naren, Divya Pillai, Karunakaran, Kalpa Latha, Babloo Prithiveeraj and Viva Harsha
• Prakash Raj

Karthik Theeda wrote the story. Devi Sri Prasad composed the music, whose songs “Bujji Thalli”, “Hilesso” and “Shiva Shakti” The Hindu calls chartbusters; Shamdat was the cinematographer and Navin Nooli the editor. The film began as NC23, was announced in November 2023 and was shot in Udupi, Mangaluru, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam. It is Chaitanya’s third film with Mondeti, after Premam and Savyasachi, and reunites him with Sai Pallavi after Love Story.

Reception and awards

The Hindu wrote that the leads and Devi Sri Prasad’s music elevate a partly choppy saga whose romance works far better than its sea and prison portions. Hindustan Times called it a mixed bag that works as a love story. 123telugu reported that it became Naga Chaitanya’s first film to gross ₹100 crore. Chaitanya won Best Actor at the Telangana Gaddar Film Awards and at the INCA Awards for the role, as The Times of India reported.

Thandel OTT release

Thandel has been streaming on Netflix since 7 March 2025. The Thandel OTT page shows the platform and date with the source and when we last checked them.

Sources: the Wikipedia article; reviews in The Hindu and Hindustan Times (7 February 2025); 123telugu; The Times of India on the Gaddar and INCA awards; our own records.