A CRITICAL STUDY OF EXAMINING SUKUMAR'S DISTINCTIVE WRITING STYLE, AUTEUR FILMMAKING AND THE EVOLVING PERSONA OF ALLU ARJUN IN THEIR CINEMATIC COLLABORATIONS

This study explores the films of Indian filmmaker Sukumar, a distinctive director, writer, and producer. His recent blockbuster film, "Pushpa 2 – The Rule," has gained tremendous popularity in the Indian cinema industry. The current study intends to explore and analyze Sukumar's filmmaking pattern, the recurring themes and similarities in his films, and specifically, him as a writer. An interesting aspect of Sukumar's films is that most of his protagonists have some kind of mental or physical impairment. As in “Pushpa" has a dislocated shoulder, Chitti Babu in "Rangasthalam" has hearing loss, and Gautham in "1: Nenokkadine" has schizophrenia. His movies are character-driven and explore a range of human feelings in a very natural way. Most importantly, this research delves into the collaborative efforts of Allu Arjun and Sukumar and the evolving persona of Allu Arjun. Sukumar's first film, "Arya" (2004), was a huge hit for Allu Arjun, followed by "Arya 2" (2009). Nearly ten years later, the two worked together again on the film "Pushpa – The Rise" (2021) and its follow-up, "Pushpa – The Rule" (2024). Finally, the study looks at how Sukumar exemplifies the traits of a true auteur in his writing. The qualitative methodology will be used with content analysis.