Martin Luther King (film)

Martin Luther King is a 2023 Indian Telugu-language political satire film directed by Puja Kolluru in her directorial debut. It was jointly produced by YNOT Studios, Reliance Entertainment, and Mahayana Motion Pictures.^[1] This film's story is a remake of the Tamil movie Mandela, in which Yogi Babu played the lead role. Titled after the prominent American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr, the film stars Sampoornesh Babu in the titular role, with Naresh, Sharanya Pradeep, and Venkatesh Maha playing supporting roles.^[2]

Martin Luther King
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Puja Kolluru
Screenplay by	Venkatesh Maha
Story by	Madonne Ashwin
Based on	Mandela (2021)
Produced by	S. Sashikanth Chakravarthy Ramachandra Venkatesh Maha
Starring	Sampoornesh Babu Naresh Sharanya Pradeep Venkatesh Maha
Cinematography	Deepak Yaragera
Edited by	Puja Kolluru
Music by	Smaran
Production companies	YNOT Studios Reliance Entertainment Mahayana Motion Pictures
Release date	27 October 2023 (2023-10-27)
Country	India
Language	Telugu

The music for the film was composed by Smaran, and the cinematography was handled by Deepak Yaragera. In addition to directing, Puja Kolluru also took on the role of editor for the film.^[3]

Plot

A man without a name or identity is suddenly courted by two warring groups when he receives a voter ID. Will he reap the benefits of his newfound privilege, or will he use it as a tool for social change?

Cast

• Sampoornesh Babu as Smile aka Martin Luther King
• Naresh as Jogi
• Sharanya Pradeep as Vasantha
• Venkatesh Maha as Loki
• Goparaju Ramana
• HMT Hanmantu

Production

YNOT Studios came up with the idea of adapting the Tamil film Mandela into Telugu, and as Baradwaj Rangan suggested, they approached Venkatesh Maha. However, Venkatesh Maha declined to do another remake, as he had already remade the Malayalam film Maheshinte Prathikaaram in Telugu as Uma Maheswara Ugra Roopasya. Subsequently, they chose Venkatesh's associate director, Puja Kolluru, to direct the film. Venkatesh wrote the screenplay and dialogue for the film, which is set in the town of Markapur. Sampoornesh Babu was later selected for the lead role. To prepare for the role of Smile, Sampoornesh underwent a forty-day workshop.^[4]

Music

The film's music was composed by Smaran.^[5][6]

Martin Luther King
Soundtrack album by Smaran
Released	2023
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Length	18:16
Language	Telugu
Label	YNOT Music
Smaran chronology
Modern Love Hyderabad (2022) Martin Luther King (2023)

Track listing

No.	Title	Lyrics	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Gaba Gaba Gaba"	Rehman	Smaran, Aishwarya Daruri	4:00
2.	"Kingu Kingu"	Rehman	Mano	3:54
3.	"Ee Galilo"	Rehman	Wilson Herald, Nikhita Srivalli	2:47
4.	"Rajevvadu Bantevvadu"	Rehman	Yashwanth Nag	4:57
5.	"Emaindhi Ra"	Rehman	Smaran	2:38
Total length:				18:16

Release

Theatrical

The film was released on 27 October 2023.^[7]

Home media

The film premiered on SonyLIV on 28 November 2023, in Telugu, as well as dubbed versions in Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, and Hindi.

Reception

A critic from Sakshi gave the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote a mixed review.^[8] Srivathsan Nadadhur of OTTPlay gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote, "Director Puja Kolluru’s Martin Luther King is a sharp social commentary with a good dose of drama and humour."^[9]