Mahi v Raghav
Biography
Mahi V. Raghav is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer known for his works in Telugu cinema. He is notable for directing Anando Brahma, a comedy horror, and Yatra, a biopic of YS Raja Sekhar Reddy, late CM of Andhra Pradesh.
He started his film career as a producer and went on to become a screenwriter and director with the films Pathasala, Anando Brahma, and Yatra.
Raghav began his career as a producer for Villagelo Vinayakudu, with Moonwater Pictures. The production house funded three films altogether. In 2014, he wrote and directed the third film of a production company, Pathasala.
After the critically acclaimed Pathasala, he directed the comedy horror, Anando Brahma, with Taapsee Pannu, Vennela Kishore, and Shakalaka Shankar in 2017.
Bankrolled by 70mm Entertainments, it broke all the clichés of horror comedies and did well at the box office. The success of the film led it to be remade as Petromax in Tamil and Mane Maratakkide in Kannada.
In 2019, he made Yatra, the biographical film of the late Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, under 70mm Entertainments and Three Autumn Leaves.
Mammootty enacted the role of Reddy, with the plot based on real incidents that led him to conduct his famous Padayatra, which later made him the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh in 2004.
The phrase Nenu vinnanu, Nenu unnanu, written by Raghav, was used as a campaign slogan by the YSR Congress Party, during the 2019 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly elections.
It also has been titled the book written on the political campaigns of Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy, the current Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. With Yatra, Raghav announced his new production house, Three Autumn Leaves.
In 2023, he made his foray into OTT content for Disney+Hotstar. He was the showrunner for Save the Tigers, a family drama starring Priyadarshi Pulikonda, Chaitanya Krishna, and Abhinav Gomatam in the lead roles.
It received positive reviews from both the critics and the audience, alike. His second series as a showrunner, Shaitan, was a crime thriller that starred Rishi, Jaffer Sadiq, Devayani Sharma, Shelly Kishore, and Ravi Kale in the lead roles.
It received mixed reviews from both the critics and the audience, alike. It gained notoriety for the glorification of violence, profanity, and sexual content.
He also announced two feature films, Yatra 2 and Sidda Lokam Ela Undhi Nayana. The latter is a social satire starring Shraddha Srinath in the lead role along with a range of supporting actors. It is titled Sidda Lokam Ela Undhi Nayana and is slated to be released in 2023.
