# Sye (2004 film)

Sye (/ˈsaɪ/ transl. Challenge) is a 2004 Indian Telugu-language sports action film directed by S. S. Rajamouli, who co-wrote the film with V. Vijayendra Prasad. The film is produced by A. Bharati under Sri Bharathi Enterprises. The film features Nithin, Genelia D'Souza, Shashank and Pradeep Rawat. The story has a rugby backdrop. In the film, two rival groups in a college—Science led by Prudhvi and Arts led by Shashank—fight for superiority through the game of rugby, until a local gangster Bhikshu Yadav takes over their college.
This was Rajamouli's third film post the successes of Student No: 1 and Simhadri. Music composed by M. M. Keeravani with cinematography by K. K. Senthil Kumar and editing by Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao. The film earned ₹11 crore in distributor share’s (US$2.4 million) against a production budget of ₹10.2 crore (US$1.5 million) and was commercially successful. The film won four Nandi Awards.

## Plot

Prudhvi (Nithiin) and Shashank (Shashank) are the leaders of two warring student groups in a Hyderabad college. Their rivalry is intense, marked by constant clashes and a fierce competition for dominance. They are fond of the game of rugby, and they sort things out issues between them by playing rugby to prove their superiority. Despite their differences, the groups share a deep love for their college, especially its vast playground, which is a hub of their activities.
However, their lives take a drastic turn when a local mafia leader Bhikshu Yadav (Pradeep Rawat) gets a court notice that he has purchased the college land from its legal heirs. Prudhvi and Sashank's groups unite and forget their mutual differences to win back the college. The students attack the political career of Bhikshu by posting fake posters of him in the streets. They go to his liquor shops and play dead to make it appear that the shops sold spurious poisonous liquor which killed the students. After getting affected by the student assaults, Bhikshu Yadav throws a challenge to defeat his team in a game of rugby to win back the land for their college. The condition is set: if the students win, Bhikshu will leave the land alone; if they lose, the land is his. The rest of the story is how Prudhvi leads his team to the victory.

## Cast

* Nithiin as Prudhvi
* Genelia D'Souza as Indu
* Shashank as Shashank
* Rajiv Kanakala as Rugby coach Rafi, Qader's son
* Pradeep Rawat as Bhikshu Yadav
* Nassar as Qadar, college property owner
* Chatrapathi Sekhar as Bhikshu Yadav's right hand and an advocate
* Ajay as Bhikshu Yadav's henchman
* Tanikella Bharani as Prudhvi's father and college principal
* Venu Madhav as Nalla Balu
* S. S. Kanchi as Indu's father
* Preeti Nigam as Prudhvi's mother
* Swathi Katrapati as Venni, Indu's friend and Shani's girlfriend
* Supreeth as Bhikshu Yadav's henchmen
* Madhunandan as College Student
* Sameer as ACP Aravind
* Surya as Pinganoori Panganamalu alias Ping Pong
* Shravan as Chotu, Shashank's classmate
* Natraj Master as Spare
* Sivannarayana Naripeddi
* Narsing Yadav
* Alapati Lakshmi

### Cameo appearance

* S. S. Rajamouli as Nalla Balu's henchman

## Production

Nithiin and other actors underwent two months of rugby training.

## Soundtrack

The film has six songs composed by M. M. Keeravani. The audio release function was held at the Taj Banjara hotel in Hyderabad.

## Reception

A critic from Sify opined that "Go ahead and enjoy and rugby game. Sye is a roller coaster ride of pure unadulterated masala". Jeevi of Idlebrain wrote, "Plus points of the film are Raja Mouli's stylish taking and MM Keeravani music. The main negative point in the film is failing in getting the emotions right till the climax of the film".

## Box office

The film had a successful 365-day run at one center. It collected ₹11 crore share at box office. Sye was the most expensive film in Rajamouli's career till 2004 as it was made with over ₹10 crore budget.

## Recognition

In the lead up to the 2015 Rugby World Cup, a video of the rugby scenes from Sye went viral.
When Willie Hateraka, belonging to the Maori sect of New Zealand, working as the coach for Indian Army's Rugby team, saw the film Sye, was so impressed with the movie that he recommended Rajamouli's name to the International Rugby Board as the director for their proposed feature film based on rugby, which never entered production. Hateraka, who couldn't even understand English properly nor the language of the film, connected to the film emotionally. The film went on to be one of the only 3 films that the Rugby Board found suitable as promotional material for the game of Rugby.

## Awards
### Nandi Awards

* Best Editor - Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao
* Best Male Dubbing Artist - P. Ravi Shankar
* Best Supporting Actor - Shashank
* Best Villain - Pradeep Rawat

### Filmfare Awards South

* Filmfare Best Villain Award (Telugu) - Pradeep Rawat (2004)