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Taj Mahal is a 2008 Indian Kannada-language romantic drama film directed and written by R. Chandru and starring Ajay Rao and Pooja Gandhi.[2] Produced by T. Shivashankar Reddy, the film is Chandru's directoral debut. The film opened on 25 July 2008, and had a 200-day run in Karanataka.[3] Music director Abhiman Roy was awarded the Best Music Director accolade at the Karnataka State Film Awards for his film score. Taj Mahal was one of the most successful Kannada-language films of 2008.[4] It was remade in Telugu under the same title - Taj Mahal in 2010.[5][6][7]

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Taj Mahal
Theatrical poster
Directed by	R. Chandru
Written by	R. Chandru
Produced by	T. Shivashankar Reddy
Starring	Ajay Rao Pooja Gandhi Rangayana Raghu Ananth Nag
Cinematography	K. S. Chandrashekar
Edited by	K. M. Prakash
Music by	Abhiman Roy
Production company	Shiva Shakthi Enterprises
Release date	25 July 2008 (2008-07-25)
Running time	154 minutes
Country	India
Language	Kannada
Box office	₹10 crore (US$1.3 million)[1]

Plot

Ajaykumar, an honest, poor boy from a village, hands over a lost suitcase to the police. He tells them that his name is Kumar and leaves his cell number. Shruthi, the owner of the suitcase, is elated when she recovers her father's suitcase, and calls Kumar to thank him.

They speak over the phone many times and slowly fall in love. Incidentally they both study in the same engineering college, but Shruthi knows her lover only as Kumar. In college he is known as Ajay. Shruthi is not aware that Ajay and Kumar are the same person and flatly rejects Ajay when he proposes to her. In confusion and deep agony, Ajay decides to finish his engineering and go back to his village but on the examination day he gets a call from Shruthi.

Production

Sunil Raoh was asked to play the lead but backed out, citing personal reasons. Ajay Rao, who had one successful role in the film Excuse Me, replaced Raoh. Taj Mahal's success enhanced Rao's career.

Upon the film's release, some viewers called Chandru, accusing him of basing the film on their lives. Chandru dismissed these claims and stated that the film was based on events in a friend's life.[8]

Cast

• Ajay Rao as Ajay
• Pooja Gandhi as Shruti
• Ananth Nag as Shruthi's father
• Ashok
• Rangayana Raghu as Shankranna
• Vishwanath Mundasada
• Honnavalli Krishna
• Aravind
• Padmaja Rao
• Padmini Prakash
• K. Annamalai (I.P.S)

Soundtrack

The music of the film was composed by Abhiman Roy. The soundtrack won him the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Music Director for 2008-09.

Taj Mahal
Soundtrack album by Abhiman Roy
Released	2008 (2008)
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Label	Skanda Audio

Critical response

Rediff.com awarded the film 3.5 stars out of 5, writing, "Taj Mahal blends pure romance with a right portion of sentiment and a bit of humour. And it is ably complemented by its excellent music and brilliant cinematography. The film also underlines the importance of parents' contribution to the future of their children, and how such an important factor is missed out by today's youngsters... Performance-wise, Ajay has come out with his best till date. The actor, who made a very good first impression with Prem's Excuse Me, has bounced back with this powerful performance. Pooja Gandhi looks stunning and has worked hard to give a very strong performance."[9]

indiaglitz.com rated the film 7.5 out of 10 and stated that Ajay Rao "has done his role quite comfortably. Pooja Gandhi the heroine to watch on Kannada screen has been very good in emotions."[10]

Sify rated the film 4 out of 5 and wrote that Rao "has done it impressively and he is looking for a major breakthrough. Pooja Gandhi looks pretty and has done a good job. Suresh Mangalore Rangayana Raghu and Ananthnag are apt."[11]

Box office

The film was released in Karnataka and completed a 200-day theatrical run. The film grossed over ₹10 crore (US$1.3 million) at the Indian box-office, against a budget of ₹2.5 crore.[1][3]^{[better source needed]}

Awards and nominations

Awards and nominations Award Wins Nominations 56th Filmfare Awards South 5 7 Karnataka State Film Awards 1 1
Totals
Awards won	6
Nominations	8

Awards

Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result	Ref.
56th Filmfare Awards South	Best Actress	Pooja Gandhi	Nominated	[12]
	Best Actor	Ajay Rao	Nominated
	Best Director	R. Chandru	Nominated
	Best Music Director	Abhimann Roy	Nominated
	Best Supporting Actor	Ananth Nag	Nominated
	Best Supporting Actress	Padmaja Rao	Nominated
	Best lyricist	R. Chandru	Nominated
Karnataka State Film Awards	Best Music Director	Abhimann Roy	Won	[13]

References

External links

• List of Taj Mahal songs at Raaga.com
• Vijayasarathy, RG (25 July 2008). "Don't miss this Taj Mahal". Rediff.com India. Retrieved 25 July 2014.

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