Everyone has that one movie dialogue that stays with them forever. The power of the dialogue is such that we go on to memorise and repeat these bits at every given occasion. Be it in the introductory scene or the climax, the dialogues delivered by our stars, especially the ones comparing themselves to simham and puli (lion and tiger), find a special place in fans’ hearts. Who can forget NTR’s furious retort in Baadshah, Mahesh Babu’s cool rejoinder in Dookudu, Pawan Kalyan’s comical dig in Attarintiki Daredi and Balakrishna’s funny monologue from Paisa Vasool? When it comes to the one liner, it’s all about saying it with a loud, majestic roar.
Jr NTR
Nobody demonstrates this better than Balayya himself. Fondly referred to as Natasimham, his latest dialogue drawing similarities to the puli, from Paisa Vasool, is a rage. “Thammudu... nenu Jungle Book cinema chudaledu kani andulo puli na lage untundani andaru chepparu. (Brother, I haven’t watched the movie Jungle Book but people say that the tiger in it is just like me).” Another gem of his is from Legend, “Flute jinka mundu oodu simham mundu kaadu. (Play the flute before a deer, not before a lion).”
Mahesh Babu
“Balakrishna garu is a star and is known for delivering powerful dialogues, so if fans have to recite and repeat them, he needs to mouth catchy one liners.
Pavan Kalyan
That’s what I did in Paisa Vasool. We compare him to the lion and tiger to establish the character’s ferocity,” explains director Puri Jagannadh.
Boyapati Sreenu, who has written and directed Simha and Legend, elucidates, “Writing dialogues for Balayya garu gives me goosebumps because his fans always look forward to fierce dialogues. Just like how the lion is the king of forest, Balayya creates a splash whenever he arrives on the screen. The background score plays a crucial role during such dialogues.”
Prabhas
Balakrishna isn’t the only lion in town. The fans of Jr NTR can’t get enough of his huge monologue from the socio fantasy film Yamadonga, which features “Rey…pulini dhuram nunchi choodali anipinchindi anuko... chusko... (Hey, watch a tiger only from a distance).” His other one liner from Baadshah is also a crowd-pleaser. “Puli bone lo unnappudu bacha gadu kuda aadukuntadu. When the lion is in a cage, any Tom, Dick and Harry will also play games with it.” Also popular is Mahesh Babu in Dookukdu, with “Padukunna puli ni panichese police ni kelikithe veta ee. (Whether you disturb a tiger that’s asleep or a policeman, it’s always a chase.)”
Gopi Mohan, who was part of the writing team of Dookudu and Baadshah, says, “Lions and tigers are the kings of the forest, so the protagonist’s dialogues with such references will only to elevate the heroism. Also, such catchphrases have high recall value and generate a good buzz among the masses. But the dialogues will only work if the protagonist is a star.”
So do these stars insist on such dialogues? “No, they do not,” replies director Sreenu Vaitla, adding, “Sometimes we create a situation to showcase how powerful the hero is, so we use references of ferocious animals for greater impact.”
Jr NTR agrees. He says, “The dialogues should be naturally flowing in a conversation and should not look like forceful insertions. So comparisons with the tiger will be put in only if the context is appropriate.”
When it comes to savage dialogues, Prabhas isn’t far behind. Who can forget “Nenu rendu nellu upavasam tharavatha vetade puli ni… (I’m a tiger who’s been fasting for two months)” from Rebel. And when Pawan Kalyan recited, “Soodappa Siddappa.. Nenu simham lantodini, adhi geddam geesukoledu, nenu geesukogalanu...anthe theda.. migatadantha...same to same. (Look man Siddhappa, I am just like a lion. The only difference is that I can shave my beard and it cannot.) ” in Attarintiki Daredi, his fans went gaga. Also memorable is his dialogue from Sardaar Gabbar Singh, “Arrey o haule, nenemanna gurrani anukunnava be savari cheyyataniki? simhanni. (I’m not a horse to be taken for a ride. I’m a lion!)
However, director K.S. Ravindra (Bobby) says drawing comparisons to the lion and the tiger is not a new phenomenon. The likes of Sr N.T. Rama Rao, Krishnam Raju, etc., delivered these with great intensity. And the younger stars are only following suit.
