Anaganaga Oka Raju

Anaganaga Oka Raju (అనగనగా ఒకరాజు, “Once Upon a Time, a King”) is a 2026 Telugu comedy drama directed by Maari, starring Naveen Polishetty and Meenakshi Chaudhary. Produced by Sithara Entertainments and Fortune Four Cinemas, it opened on 14 January 2026 for Sankranthi to positive reviews, runs 147 minutes, and has streamed on Netflix since 11 February 2026.

What the story is about

Raju is the grandson of a once-rich zamindar who squandered the family fortune, leaving him nothing but a famous surname. Determined to keep up appearances, Raju goes on acting wealthy in his village, and after being humiliated at a friend’s lavish wedding he decides the way back to status is to marry into money. At a village fair he spots Charulatha and, with his loyal assistant and friends, launches “Operation Charulatha” to win her over. The plan works, and the wedding sets off a comedy of mutual pretence that later pulls Raju into village politics.

Cast and characters

• Naveen Polishetty as Raju, and as his grandfather Gouravapuram Goparaju
• Meenakshi Chaudhary as Charulatha “Charu”
• Rao Ramesh as Pedapalem Bhupathi Raju, Charu’s father
• Tarak Ponnappa as Erri Babu
• Goparaju Ramana as Muhurthala Murthy, a marriage broker, and Chammak Chandra as Raju’s assistant
• Mamilla Shailaja Priya as Raju’s mother and Ananth Babu as the priest
• Sivannarayana Naripeddi, Jhansi, Mukku Avinash and Rocket Raghava
• Saanve Megghana in a dance cameo in “Andhra to Telangana”

Crew and music

• Director: Maari
• Producers: Suryadevara Naga Vamsi and Sai Soujanya (Sithara Entertainments, Fortune Four Cinemas)
• Music: Mickey J. Meyer, with audio rights held by Aditya Music

The project was announced in September 2021 with Kalyan Shankar as director and the title revealed in January 2022; Maari later took over direction, and Mickey J. Meyer replaced Thaman S as composer. Meenakshi Chaudhary was confirmed as the female lead in December 2024, and filming began in February 2025. The first single, “Bhimavaram Balma” (27 November 2025), was Naveen Polishetty’s debut as a singer, followed by “Raju Gaari Pelli Ro” on 26 December 2025.

Release and reception

Most critics agreed that Naveen Polishetty carries the film, while the writing and second half drew complaints.

• Times Now (Risha Ganguly), 3.5/5: “an entertaining, one-man comedy” and “a more than decent festive watch”.
• Sakshi Post (Sandeep Athreya), 3.25/5: his presence “makes it an enjoyable ride”.
• Filmfare (Sashidhar Adivi), Cinema Express (Suresh Kavirayani) and The Indian Express (Swaroop Kodur), each 3/5.
• The Hindu (Sangeetha Devi Dundoo): uneven, but Naveen’s timing and Meenakshi’s screen presence make it “immensely watchable”.
• Telugucinema.com (Jalapathi Gudelli), 2.75/5, and Deccan Chronicle (BVS Prakash) were cooler on the familiar story.

At the box office, a Cinema Express report from 19 January 2026 said the film had entered the ₹100 crore club.

Where to watch Anaganaga Oka Raju

Anaganaga Oka Raju streams on Netflix, which acquired the digital rights. It began streaming on 11 February 2026.

More Telugu films like this on Tollywood Desk: Nari Nari Naduma Murari, Laggam Time, Vishnu Vinyasam.

Sources: the Wikipedia article on Anaganaga Oka Raju and the reviews and reports it cites; our own cast, crew, release and OTT records.