Bhale Kodallu

Bhale Kodallu is a 1968 Telugu-language comedy film written and directed by K. Balachander. It was simultaneously filmed in Tamil as Bama Vijayam, despite being released more than a year after that. The film features an ensemble cast consisting of S. V. Ranga Rao, Sowcar Janaki, Kanchana, Jayanthi, Nagabhushanam, Ramakrishna, Chalam, Rajasree and Saraswathi.

Plot
A movie star moves into the neighbourhood where a joint family of three husbands and their wives live. Her presence sends the wives into a spending spree as they buy radios and fancy goods to keep up with their glamorous neighbour, while accusing their husbands of being too close to the star.

Cast
Credits adapted from Chitra Seema:
 * S. V. Ranga Rao as Narasimham
 * Sowcar Janaki as Parvathi
 * Kanchana as Seetha
 * Jayanthi as Rukmini
 * Nagabhushanam as Shankaram
 * Ramakrishna as Ramam
 * Chalam as Krishna
 * Rajasree as the movie star
 * Saraswathi as Sacchu

Production
In 1965, when K. Balachander was "just getting his bearings in the film industry", his household was excited because Sowcar Janaki, a star, was due to visit their house. This incident laid the foundation for Bhale Kodallu, which was written and directed by Balachander, and produced by S. S. Vasan under Gemini Studios. It was simultaneously filmed in Tamil as Bama Vijayam, with a slightly different cast. The final length of the film was 4767 metres.

Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed by M. S. Viswanathan, while the lyrics were written by C. Narayana Reddy.

Release
Bhale Kodallu was released on 26 April 1968, over a year after Bama Vijayam (24 February 1967).