Akhil Akkineni’s ‘Lenin’ releases: Epic love tale set in Chittoor

Akhil Akkineni returns to films after 3 years with Lenin, directed by Murali Kishor Abburu. The Telugu drama is set during the Bharatham Mitta festival in a fictional Chittoor village and frames love as “more violent than war.”

Akhil plays Lenin, an outsider who becomes part of the village, then gets pulled into a story of love, deceit and revenge. The film layers its plot with Mahabharata and Ramayana references — from card games to Shakuni-like characters.

Bhagyashri Borse co-stars as Bharathi. Her character is written with agency, questioning marriage norms in one key scene. Easwari Rao and Brahmaji are among the supporting cast.

Visually rich with Leon Britto’s camera work and S Thaman’s score, Lenin runs 159 minutes. While Akhil’s rustic transformation and action scenes have been noted, the film is criticized for a love story that doesn’t fully connect and for leaning on the mass-action formula. Some twists land, others are predictable. Lenin marks Akhil’s attempt at a new image, but may not fully break away from genre conventions.