Telugu Film Industry or Tollywood is one of the biggest film industries in India. It is prolific and produces films in a variety of genres. Romance is one of the oldest and one of the most popular genres of Tollywood. Few actors like Akkineni Nageshwar Rao, Shoban Babu, Nagarjuna, Uday Kiran are famous for starring in Romantic films.
Some of classy “platonic” love stories made by Telugu film industry are;
#1. Saptapadi (1981)
One of the classic films directed by the legendary K Viswanath, Saptapadi is a story which revolves around the relation between a Brahmin Classical Dancer (Hema) and a Dalit Flutist (Haribabu). It is remembered for its bold take on caste system at a time when the society was still conservative. The relationship between Hema and Haribabu was presented beautifully and there wasn't even a single scene, where Haribabu proposed Hema! The film was later remade in Hindi in 1984 as Jaag Utha Insaan.
#2. Sagara Sangamam (1983)
Another cult film made by K Viswanath, Sagara Sangamam chronicles the story of a male classical dancer Balakrishna (portrayed by Kamal Hassan). The story mainly revolves around the character of Balakrishna, but there was a portion where his relationship with Madhavi (portrayed by Jaya Prada) is shown. Balakrishna developed feelings for Madhavi but later discovered that she is married and is seperated from her husband! He gets a chance of marrying Madhavi but chooses to unite Madhavi with her husband. Not completely a romantic film, but the bond between Balakrishna and Madhavi is considered to be platonic and matured.
#3. Swathi Mutyam (1986)
The second collaboration of K Viswanath and Kamal Hassan, Swathi Mutyam till date remains the only Telugu film to be sent as India's official entry to Oscars. Swathi Mutyam follows the story of Shivayya (Kamal Hassan) and Lalitha (Radhika). The films chronicles how Shivayya, a person suffering with autism rescues Radhika, a widow from the atrocities of widowhood by marrying her! Except for the song, Manasu Pallike (where both had a romantic intercourse), Shivayya and Lalitha are shown sharing a very deep and platonic relationship with each other.
#4. Anand (2004)
One of the most popular romantic film of the modern era, Anand was directed by Shekhar Kammula and was released in 2004. Anand follows the story of Roopa (portrayed by Kamalini Mukherjee) who starts living independently after her family dies in a car accident and Anand (potrayed by Raja Able) who is a rich man, falls in love with her and moves into her neighbourhood to win her over. The film is liked by youngsters and adults alike and is considered to be one of the modern classy love stories of Tollywood.
#5. Godavari (2006)
The second film directed by Shekhar Kammula after Anand, Godavari follows the story of Ram (potrayed by Sumanth) and Sita (potrayed by Kamalini Mukherjee) who meet under different circumstances in a boat trip to Badrachalam in the river Godavari. It became an industry hit at the time of its release and attained the status of classic over the years.
These are some of the evergreen love stories made in Tollywood.