Johnny (2003 film)

Johnny is a 2003 Indian Telugu-language martial-arts film written and directed by Pawan Kalyan. Produced by Allu Aravind, the film starred Pawan Kalyan in the title role, while Renu Desai, Raghuvaran, and Raza Murad played pivotal roles. The film revolves around a martial arts coach who decides to use his skills to earn prize money in competitions required to save his wife suffering from blood cancer. This movie is based on the short story  The Last Leaf by popular writer O. Henry. Pawan Kalyan took the rights and written the scipt of Johnny.

Johnny was released on April 25, 2003. It also became the first-ever Telugu film to be released with over 250 prints worldwide including the United States. The film was screened at the International Film Festival of India.

Plot
Johnny loses his mother when he was a kid. He runs away from his alcoholic father Ravishankar and dysfunctional family. Years later, from a small time club fighter, Johnny becomes a mixed martial arts coach. One day, a woman named Geetha lodges a police complaint on Johnny for beating up a man. Later, she discovers that it was a misunderstanding. Both become friends and eventually get married. After marriage, Johnny finds out that his wife is suffering from leukemia. He relocates to Mumbai to pay for her medical treatment and finds himself in dire need to pay for the medical expenses. While competing at an amateur kickboxing competition, Johnny is bought out by the organizer Tatya for a lump some offer to compete with two international martial artists. Johnny defeats them and earns a sum of ₹200,000 overnight, which he uses for Geeta's treatment.

Soundtrack
The music for the film was composed by Ramana Gogula. The song "Ee Reyi Theyanadi" is based on the Chitti Chellelu (1970) song of the same name which itself was based on the French song L'amour est bleu (1967).

Distribution rights
Johnny worldwide distribution rights were sold for a record breaking amount of ₹8.1 crore. Johnny was released in 325 Theaters worldwide with digital print quality.