Released · Telugu film · 2011
Once Upon a Warrior
అనగనగా ఓ ధీరుడు
Once Upon a Warrior release date: 14 January 2011 (theatres). Directed by Prakash Kovelamudi; starring Siddharth, Shruti Haasan and Lakshmi Manchu.
- Film release
- 14 January 2011 · All 2011 films
- Director
- Prakash Kovelamudi
- Music
- Salim-Sulaiman
- Production
- The Walt Disney Company India
- Producer
- Prakash Kovelamudi
- Writing credits
- Prakash Kovelamudi
- Language
- Telugu
OTT release
No streaming platform is on file for this film.
Film release: 14 January 2011 · all 2011 Telugu films.
Source: the film’s Wikipedia article, checked 25 September 2026. It does not name a streaming platform or date; this page says so rather than guessing.
Anaganaga O Dheerudu, released internationally as Once Upon a Warrior, is a 2011 Telugu fantasy adventure written and directed by Prakash Kovelamudi in his first mainstream film. It was produced by Walt Disney Pictures with K. Raghavendra Rao’s banner A Bellyful of Dreams Entertainment, Disney’s first South Indian production. Siddharth stars as the swordsman Yodha, with Shruti Haasan and Lakshmi Manchu, both making their Telugu debuts, and Baby Harshitha. It was released on 14 January 2011, at Sankranti, to average reviews and box office.
What the story is about
Long ago, the sorceress Irendri terrorised the people of Anga Rajyam until a guru destroyed her, but she trapped her soul in a locket. Generations later, the locket hangs around the neck of Priya, a gypsy girl from her family. Yodha, a travelling swordsman with an eye for women, falls for Priya. When the local goon Sudigundam burns the gypsies’ village, the locket is touched by fire and Irendri is set free, while Yodha is blinded. He is then entrusted with protecting Moksha, a nine-year-old girl with healing powers who must reach a distant village whose children Irendri has struck down. Their journey, with the witch’s forces hunting the child, is the adventure at the centre of the film.
Cast
- Siddharth as Yodha
- Shruti Haasan as Priya
- Lakshmi Manchu as the sorceress Irendri
- Baby Harshitha as Moksha
- Ravi Babu as Sudigundam, with Brahmanandam, Ali, Tanikella Bharani and Hari Teja in supporting roles
How it was made
Pre-production began in June 2009 and shooting in October 2009, across India and in Turkey. The film drew attention because it introduced three children of established film families, director Prakash Kovelamudi (son of K. Raghavendra Rao), Shruti Haasan and Lakshmi Manchu, and because fantasy adventure was a rare genre in Indian cinema at the time. Disney joined as co-producer during production. Soundararajan was the cinematographer and Sravan Katikaneni the editor.
Music
Salim–Sulaiman composed the background score. The soundtrack was an ensemble effort by Salim–Sulaiman, M. M. Keeravani, Koti and Mickey J. Meyer.
Release and reception
The film opened on 14 January 2011. Its performance was weaker than expected, and Tamil and Malayalam dubbed versions were put on hold indefinitely. In North America it was rated PG-13 for “violence and scary images”. Radhika Rajamani of Rediff.com rated it 3 out of 5, calling it a “visual extravaganza” with strong photography, art direction and CGI but some loopholes in the story. Sify also gave 3 out of 5, but felt that after a grand opening “the tempo dies, dragging the film into a monotonous drama”. Buena Vista Home Entertainment released it on DVD and digital download on 26 July 2011.
Awards
Lakshmi Manchu’s Irendri was the film’s most decorated performance: she won the Nandi Award for Best Villain and a SIIMA award for a negative role, among others. Shruti Haasan won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South and the CineMAA and SIIMA debut awards, and Phani Eggone won the Nandi Award for Best Special Effects.
Where to watch Anaganaga O Dheerudu
We do not have a confirmed streaming platform for the film on file. The OTT details on this page will be updated when a platform’s own listing confirms it.
Sources: the Wikipedia article on Anaganaga O Dheerudu and the reviews it cites, linked above; Wikidata; our own cast and crew records.
Cast of Once Upon a Warrior (2011)
- Siddharth as Yodha
- Shruti Haasan as Priya
- Lakshmi Manchu as Irendri
- Brahmanandam as Jaffa
Additional cast
Further acting credits recorded for this film; voice-only and dubbing credits are excluded.
- Tanikella Bharani as Kaksheera
- Ali as Jilebi
- Ravi Babu as Sudigundam
- Hari Teja as Chitra
- Gundu Sudarshan as Gundu
- Subbaraya Sharma as Lama
Also in the cast (TMDB): Harshita as Moksha, Vallabhaneni Ramji as Druki, Gunjan Bakshi as Manju, Subbaraju as Danaiah, Ananth Babu as Kulfi, Madhavi as Devika, Kaikala Satyanarayana as Village Head, Subhas as Bandit-1, John as Bandit-2, Phani Eggone as Crow-1, Mahesh as Crow-2, Master Charan as Child.
Character names as listed on TMDB, checked 10 Oct 2026.
Source record: Q3473876 on Wikidata. Dates are those on record and can change; this is not a studio announcement. Spotted an error? Send a correction.