Shri Krishna Vijayam

Shri Krishna Vijayam (Sri Krishna Vijayamu, “Victory of Lord Krishna”) is a 1971 Telugu Hindu mythological film directed by Kamalakara Kameswara Rao and produced by M. S. Reddy under the Kaumudi Art Pictures banner. N. T. Rama Rao plays Krishna opposite Jayalalithaa, and Pendyala Nageswara Rao composed the music. It was released on 11 January 1971 and runs 148 minutes.

What the story is about

After Krishna disposes of the Yavana king Kalayavana, the demon’s twin Mahodara takes his place and swears revenge. Prompted by the sage Narada, Mahodara performs a great penance and wins a boon from Shiva: no weapon unleashed by another person can harm him. Now almost invincible, he terrorises the worlds and preys on women. To stop him, Brahma creates the beautiful Vasundhara, who, as long as she wears a particular ring, looks like a statue to every man except her destined partner. Narada, appointed her guardian, brings her to Dwaraka under Rukmini’s protection, assuring the queen that Krishna will never notice her. The film’s comedy and drama spring from how wrong that promise turns out to be, as Krishna, Vasundhara, his jealous queens and Mahodara all collide.

Cast and crew

• N. T. Rama Rao as Lord Krishna
• Jayalalithaa as Vasundhara
• S. V. Ranga Rao as Mahodara and Kalayavana
• Kanta Rao as Narada
• Jamuna as Satyabhama and Devika as Rukmini
• Hema Malini as Rambha
• Nagabhushanam as Paundraka Vasudeva, Mikkilineni as Balarama and Dhulipala as Muchukunda
• Rajanala as Shiva, Prabhakar Reddy as Brahma and Rama Prabha as Saraswati
• Ramakrishna as Satyaki, with Allu Ramalingaiah and Satyanarayana

Director: Kamalakara Kameswara Rao. Producer: M. S. Reddy. Music: Pendyala Nageswara Rao. Art direction: Madhavapeddi Gokhale.

Making the film

This was Rama Rao’s 210th film. It was mostly in black and white, with a few scenes in colour. Art director Madhavapeddi Gokhale sketched every set before it was built and matched jewellery and costumes to each character. Hema Malini, busy in Hindi films, first turned down her role but agreed after seeing the sketches of her character and hearing the song; she gave it five Sundays and completed it within a month. The song “Joharu Sikhi Pincha Mouli” is set in raga Athana.

Box office

The film was a commercial failure, according to The Hindu, which notes its Hindi dub, Hare Krishna, released in 1974, in a piece on Jayalalithaa’s brief link with Hindi cinema.

Where to watch Shri Krishna Vijayam

We do not have a confirmed streaming listing for Shri Krishna Vijayam on file. If we verify one with a platform, it will appear on this page.

Sources: the Wikipedia article on Sri Krishna Vijayamu and the report it cites, linked above; our own cast and crew records.