As the campaigning for the by-election to Jubilee Hills assembly seat is reaching a feverish pitch, an interesting story is doing rounds on social media about a forgotten incident that happened during the combined Andhra Pradesh.
According to the story, former Bharat Rashtra Samithi MLA from Jubilee Hills constituency Maganti Gopinath, whose untimely death necessitated the present by-election, wanted to make a film on the infamous episode of backstabbing of TDP founder and former chief minister N T Rama Rao by present TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu in 1995.
After the political coup that dethroned NTR and brought Chandrababu Naidu to power, there was hectic political activity at Himayatnagar in the heart of Hyderabad, where the offices of TDP headed by Naidu and NTR-TDP headed by Nandamuri Lakshmi Parvathi were located a few furlongs away from each other.
NTR’s elder son-in-law Daggubati Venkateshwara Rao, who was initially part of Naidu’s coup against NTR, quit the TDP and joined the Lakshmi Parvathi camp. Interestingly, Maganti Gopinath, too, was in the same camp.
Frequent political discussions took place in NTR’s TDP office, often revolving around the “backstab” that changed the course of party history.
During one such conversation, a journalist suggested to Daggubati that he should make a political film based on the backstab episode — especially since he had prior acting experience.
Venkateswara Rao reportedly became enthusiastic about the idea and immediately discussed it with Maganti Gopinath, who was present at the time.
Maganti had produced a couple of films earlier. The two decided to explore the project, with Maganti suggesting they find a director right away.
The following day, a report about their plan to produce a film on the “backstab” appeared in Andhra Bhoomi, triggering widespread discussion across the state and within political circles.
However, despite early excitement, the project never took off. Political sensitivities within the TDP — and pressure from senior leaders and sympathizers — likely halted the idea.
Had it materialized, political observers believe it would have been a defining historical film of the era.
“The film that could have told the true story of TDP’s internal coup was never made — silenced, perhaps, by political prudence and party loyalty,” the social media story said.
