# Azad (2000 film)

Azad (transl. Independent) is a 2000 Indian Telugu-language superhero film written and directed by Thirupathisamy, and produced by C. Ashwini Dutt under Vyjayanthi Movies. It stars Nagarjuna Akkineni, Shilpa Shetty and Soundarya music composed by Mani Sharma. The film completed 100 days run in 4 centres and was a commercial success. Azad won four Nandi Awards and was loosely remade in Tamil as Velayudham (2011) and in Kannada as Bhagath (2004). Besides a Tamil remake, the film was dubbed into Tamil as Kurukshetram.

## Plot

Anjali, a journalist witnesses the murder of a fellow journalist who had discovered evidence against a mafia boss, Deva, and wants to sue him for his colleague's murder. Anjali is harassed by Deva when he discovers that she has the evidence. Deva is the most influential person in the region who runs Hindu Seva Samithi, but in reality, he is an undercover Islamic militant on a mission to release their terrorist group head imprisoned by the state administration. Deva is apparently a Hindu devotee who teaches the Bhagavad Gita to every human he meets. Anjali happens to see an accident in which a bunch of Deva's henchmen die. She takes this opportunity to create a character and names after the freedom fighter "Azad". She writes a letter that Azad has done this assassination to end crime in the city and state. The word spreads like wildfire that there is a man called "Azad", who is the rescuer of a common man.
A man named Chandra Sekhar Azad, has a widowed mother, a sister named Kaveri, and a fiancée named Kanaka Mahalakshmi to take care of. As Kaveri's marriage is fixed, Azad goes to Hyderabad, to get the five lakhs he saved in a chit fund company. There, he happens to be involved in a few bomb-blasting incidents and rescue incidents and avoids all the bomb blasts and crimes without his knowledge. People start to think that he is the "Azad". Anjali meets him and explains to him about her mission of ending crime in the state.
However, Azad is more interested in retrieving money from the chit fund company and going back to his home to marry off his sister. He refuses to enact the role and take the responsibility of the legendary character "Azad". But later on, the chit fund company turns out to be bogus, which was managed by Deva, to generate finance for the smuggling of ammunition to Pakistan. Upon seeing the victims of the chit fund company committing suicide, Azad wears the mask of 'Azad' to stop Deva's mission. All these incidents make Deva extremely frustrated, so he kills and blasts Kaveri at her wedding. Azad also learns that Deva is not a Hindu, but an Indian Mujahideen terrorist under the guise of a Hindu and is on a mission to destroy India.
Deva demands the state administration for release of their militant leader in exchange for the lives of train passengers hijacked by Deva en route to Pakistan via Punjab, India. Saleem, an IPS officer requests for a chance to fight them off instead of exchanging lives who would kill more people if released. Deva provokes Saleem that being a Muslim man, he is opposing his jihad. After Deva tries shooting Saleem with a Pakistan-made bullet, Saleem kills himself with his service revolver, just as freedom fighter Azad escaped the English bullet.
Azad now goes alone and gets badly beaten up by Deva. After Deva lashes that he would destroy India, Azad gets up and kills Deva. He then reunites with his family.

## Cast

* Nagarjuna Akkineni as Chandra Sekhar Azad
* Shilpa Shetty as Mahalakshmi
* Soundarya as Anjali
* Raghuvaran as Deva/Dawood
* Prakash Raj as Inspector Saleem
* Brahmanandam as Thief
* Kalairani as Azad's mother
* Sujitha as Kaveri
* Nutan Prasad as Anjali's father
* Raghunatha Reddy as Mahalakshmi's father
* Tanikella Bharani as Kanaka Raju
* Ananth Babu as School teacher
* Venu Madhav as Citizen
* Dharmavarapu Subramanyam as Editor
* M. S. Narayana as Constable
* Banerjee as Banerjee
* L. B. Sriram as Sastry
* Narsing Yadav as Rowdy
* Chitti Babu
* Gundu Hanumantha Rao
* Indu Anand as Mahalakshmi's mother
* Rajashree Reddy as Doctor
* Likitha Kamini
* Urvasi Patil in an item number

## Soundtrack

The music was composed by Mani Sharma. Music released on SUPREME Audio Company.
All lyrics are written by Piraisoodan, Muthulingam, and Ponniyin Selvan

## Awards
### Nandi Awards - 2000

* Second Best Feature Film - Silver – C. Ashwinidutt
* Best Story Writer – Thirupathisamy
* Best Dialogue Writer – Trivikram Srinivas
* Best Fight Master – Kanal Kannan

### Other awards

* Andhra Pradesh Film Journalists Association Award - 2000 – Nagarjuna