Peddi -Ram Charan’s Most Ambitious Film Yet — A Rural Underdog Story Decades in the Making

When Buchi Babu Sana’s debut film Uppena released in 2021, it became one of the most celebrated Telugu films of the decade — a raw, emotionally overpowering love story set against the sea and caste divides of coastal Andhra Pradesh. It won the National Film Award for Best Telugu Film. It launched careers. It made the industry sit up and ask: who is this director?

The answer to what he would do next took four years to arrive. And when it finally did, it came in the form of Peddi — a sweeping, large-canvas rural sports drama starring Ram Charan, set in 1980s Andhra Pradesh, with music by AR Rahman, cinematography by Rathnavelu, and a cast that stretches from Janhvi Kapoor to Shiva Rajkumar to Boman Irani.

Peddi releases in theatres worldwide on June 25, 2026. Here is everything you need to know.

What Does ‘Peddi’ Mean?

In Telugu, ‘Peddi’ is derived from the word ‘Pedda’, which means ‘big’, ‘elder’, or ‘important’. It is commonly used to refer to someone who holds significance or seniority within a family or community — a respected figure, a natural leader.

Ram Charan’s character is called Peddi Pehelwan — a village fighter-hero whose very name signals who he is to his people: the big one. The important one. The one who fights for them. The title is not just a name; it is a statement of identity and purpose.

Story & Plot

Peddi is set in rural Andhra Pradesh in the 1980s — a time of sharp social hierarchies, land disputes, and community pride. The film centres on Peddi Pehelwan (Ram Charan), a spirited, rough-and-tumble villager who refuses to accept the humiliation his community has been made to endure at the hands of a powerful, feared rival.

The rival — played by Jagapathi Babu as Appalasoori — uses money, power, and caste dynamics to keep the surrounding villages in their place. Peddi’s response is not to fight violence with violence alone but to unite his fractured, divided community around something universal: sport. Specifically, cricket — played with a rough, street-bred edge that reflects the lives of the people holding the bats.

What begins as a local sport becomes a battle for identity, pride, and survival. Threaded through the conflict is Peddi’s love story with Achiyamma (Janhvi Kapoor), a young woman from the same world who carries her own quiet strength.

Director Buchi Babu Sana has described the story as inspired by a real-life daily wage labourer whose account emotionally moved him. The film is not a biopic, but it carries the weight of lives actually lived — the kind of detail that made Uppena feel so truthful despite its operatic scale.

Cast & Characters

Note: Vijay Sethupathi was initially offered a role but declined, preferring not to reprise a father-figure role similar to his turn in Uppena (2021).

Director — Buchi Babu Sana

Buchi Babu Sana is one of the most closely watched directors in contemporary Telugu cinema. His debut film Uppena (2021) — a rural coastal love story starring Panja Vaisshnav Tej — was a phenomenon. Made on a modest budget, it went on to win the National Film Award for Best Telugu Film and the Filmfare South Award for Best Director. It introduced Vijay Sethupathi to Telugu audiences in a powerful antagonist role and delivered one of the most memorable soundtracks of that year.

Peddi is his second directorial venture. The scale is dramatically larger — the budget is nearly 10 times that of Uppena, the canvas spans a whole rural world rather than a coastal village, and the lead is Ram Charan, one of the biggest stars in Indian cinema following RRR. But by all accounts, Buchi Babu Sana has approached the material with the same commitment to emotional truth that defined his debut.

He has spoken in interviews about how the story of Peddi came to him through a real person — a daily wage labourer whose life moved him deeply. That grounding in a real human experience, even within a large commercial framework, appears to be the core of his filmmaking identity.

Ram Charan as Peddi Pehelwan — The Transformation

Ram Charan (Konidela Ram Charan Teja) needs no introduction to Telugu cinema audiences. The son of Megastar Chiranjeevi, he became a global name with SS Rajamouli’s RRR (2022) — a film that won the Academy Award for Best Original Song and took Indian cinema to an entirely new international audience.

Peddi required a different kind of transformation. The character is a roughneck village hero from the 1980s — raw, physical, working-class. Ram Charan underwent an intensive physical transformation under fitness coach Shivoham Bhatt. Beyond physique, he learned the Vizianagaram dialect of Telugu, a coastal northern Andhra accent that is distinct from standard Telugu, to bring authenticity to Peddi Pehelwan’s world.

The trailer, released at a Mumbai event on May 18, 2026, showed Ram Charan in a dusty, intense rural avatar — wielding a cricket bat, leading village crowds, and squaring off against Jagapathi Babu in high-stakes confrontations. Fans noted it as a side of him rarely seen since his earlier career, and trade sources described the response as extremely positive.

Janhvi Kapoor as Achiyamma

Janhvi Kapoor was announced as the female lead on 6 March 2024. Her character — Achiyamma — is Peddi’s love interest, a woman of the same rural world who carries her own inner strength. Janhvi relocated to Hyderabad through December 2024 specifically to prepare for the role, immersing herself in the cultural and linguistic context of coastal Andhra Pradesh.

This is Janhvi Kapoor’s second Telugu film after Devara (2024) with Jr NTR, and her casting in a Buchi Babu Sana film — given his reputation for authentic, emotionally grounded female characters — has generated significant interest from Telugu audiences.

Music, Cinematography & Technical Team

Music — A. R. Rahman

AR Rahman joined the project in January 2024 — one of the most significant announcements of the film’s pre-production phase. For Telugu audiences, a Buchi Babu Sana–AR Rahman combination is particularly charged, given how central music was to Uppena’s emotional impact (with a soundtrack that swept awards that year).

One song — ‘Chikiri’, choreographed by Jani Master — was filmed at Savalya Ghat in Pune. A high-energy special number featuring Shruti Haasan was filmed in Hyderabad in April 2026 and is expected to be one of the film’s promotional highlights.

Cinematography — R. Rathnavelu ISC

R. Rathnavelu is one of the most respected cinematographers in Indian cinema, known for his work on films like RRR, Rangasthalam, and Mersal. His appointment to Peddi signals the production’s ambition to create a visually immersive 1980s rural world.

The production design team, led by Avinash Kolla, built an entire village resembling Vizianagaram — a full 1980s coastal town — on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Period-specific props, architecture, and costumes were sourced and recreated in detail.

Editor — Naveen Nooli

Naveen Nooli, known for his sharp editing on Rangasthalam and Uppena, returns to work with Buchi Babu Sana on Peddi, bringing continuity of creative sensibility between the director’s two films.

Production Journey — From RC16 to Peddi

The film was first confirmed in late November 2022 when Ram Charan announced his collaboration with Buchi Babu Sana. It was formally launched under the working title RC16 on 20 March 2024 in Hyderabad, with Chiranjeevi himself presiding over the muhurat ceremony — a moment that signalled the weight the industry placed on this project.

The official title Peddi and the first look poster were unveiled on 27 March 2025, coinciding with Ram Charan’s 40th birthday. Principal photography had commenced in Mysuru on 22 November 2024 — the director photographed himself with the script in front of the Chamundeshwari Temple.

Filming then moved across multiple locations:

• Hyderabad — Moula Ali action sequences (April 2025); steel factory action sequence featuring Ram Charan and Shiva Rajkumar (December 2025); special song with Shruti Haasan (April 2026)
• Outskirts of Hyderabad — recreated Vizianagaram village set for stunt and dramatic sequences
• Sri Lanka (Colombo) — romantic song sequence (October 2025)
• Pune (Savalya Ghat) — Chikiri song featuring Ram Charan, choreographed by Jani Master
• Kanyakumari — scenic location shoot

In March 2026, Ram Charan suffered a minor injury during an action sequence, causing a brief delay. The film was originally scheduled for 30 April 2026, but was pushed to June 25, 2026, to allow time for completion of VFX work and the final song sequence.

Budget & Scale

Peddi is among the most expensive Telugu films ever made. The production budget is estimated at approximately ₹300–350 crore, making it one of the biggest Telugu productions of 2026 alongside other major Pan-India films.

The scale is evident in multiple dimensions: an original AR Rahman score, a pan-India cast, large-scale action sequences choreographed by Sham Kaushal (known for his work on Shah Rukh Khan films), elaborate period sets, and extensive VFX work for post-production.

North India distribution rights are handled by Jio Studios, reflecting the film’s explicit ambition to perform strongly in the Hindi-speaking belt — a market that has embraced Telugu films since the RRR phenomenon.

OTT Release Details

JioHotstar has acquired the digital streaming rights for Peddi. Based on the standard 8-week theatrical window, the film is expected to begin streaming around late August 2026. Exact dates will be announced closer to the theatrical release.

Why Peddi Matters — The Bigger Picture

Peddi arrives at a specific and significant moment in Telugu cinema. Post-RRR, there is enormous international and pan-India interest in Telugu films — but also enormous pressure on every big release to live up to that benchmark. Ram Charan, in particular, carries the weight of global attention that RRR brought him.

Peddi is a deliberate choice in that context. Rather than a mythological epic or a franchise action film, it is a deeply rooted story about a rural Indian village, told with emotional honesty and local specificity. Buchi Babu Sana’s instinct — similar to SS Rajamouli’s and to directors like Sukumar — is that the most universal stories come from the most particular places.

The combination of a director who proved himself with Uppena, a lead actor at the peak of his global recognition, and a musical score by the most celebrated Indian film composer alive creates a film with genuine historic potential. Whether it meets that potential will be known on June 25, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the release date of Peddi?

Peddi is scheduled for a worldwide theatrical release on June 25, 2026. The film was originally set for April 30, 2026, but was postponed to allow completion of VFX work and a final song sequence.

2. Who is the hero of Peddi?

Ram Charan plays the titular lead role — Peddi Pehelwan — a spirited village hero from 1980s rural Andhra Pradesh. This is his first film with director Buchi Babu Sana.

3. Who is the heroine of Peddi?

Janhvi Kapoor plays the female lead, Achiyamma, Peddi’s love interest. She prepared extensively for the role, spending time in Hyderabad to understand the cultural context of her character.

4. Who directed Peddi?

Peddi is written and directed by Buchi Babu Sana, whose debut film Uppena (2021) won the National Film Award for Best Telugu Film. This is his second directorial venture.

5. Who composed the music for Peddi?

The music and background score for Peddi are composed by A. R. Rahman, who joined the project in January 2024. Songs from the film include ‘Chikiri’, filmed in Pune, and a special number featuring Shruti Haasan.

6. What is the budget of Peddi?

The production budget for Peddi is estimated at approximately ₹300–350 crore, making it one of the most expensive Telugu films ever made.

7. Where will Peddi stream on OTT?

JioHotstar has acquired the digital streaming rights for Peddi. The film is expected to be available for streaming approximately 8 weeks after its June 25, 2026 theatrical release — around August 2026.

8. Is Peddi a remake?

No. Peddi is an original story written and directed by Buchi Babu Sana. While it draws inspiration from 1980s rural sports culture and was reportedly inspired by a real-life daily wage labourer’s story, it is not a remake of any existing film.

9. What does Peddi mean in Telugu?

In Telugu, ‘Peddi’ is derived from ‘Pedda’, meaning ‘big’, ‘elder’, or ‘important’ — a person of significance or seniority within a community. Ram Charan’s character is known as Peddi Pehelwan, reflecting his status as the community’s champion.