Mohan Babu plays villain as Dark Lord in Nani’s The Paradise

HYDERABAD: Actor Nani is teaming up once again with director Srikanth Odela for their second collaboration after Dasara. Their upcoming multilingual film The Paradise is being produced by Sudhakar Cherukuri.

Makers unveil Mohan Babu’s look as Shikanja Malik

The makers on Saturday officially revealed veteran actor Mohan Babu’s role in the film. He will be seen as the powerful antagonist Shikanja Malik. Posters released by the team showed him in two contrasting looks — one retro-themed and another bare-bodied, holding a gun with blood on his hands. “Mohan Babu’s villainy, his swag, mannerisms and punch dialogues in this film will stand out. This role will completely redefine the idea of villainy,” the film unit said.

Film to release worldwide in eight languages on March 26

Nani plays a rugged character named Jadal, appearing in an entirely new look. The film, currently in production, is scheduled to release on March 26 next year. Music is by Anirudh Ravichander and cinematography by CH Sai. Mohan Babu, who has carved a niche for himself in Telugu cinema with his distinctive performances, returns to play a dark and stylish antagonist. One of the posters showed him smoking a cigar with a vintage gun on his shoulder, while another projected a brutal, madman-like persona.

The makers said Mohan Babu’s role, described as “Dark Lord,” will rewrite villain portrayals on screen. Earlier glimpses of Nani had already built hype around the film, and the new posters of Mohan Babu have added to the buzz. The filmmakers will release the film as a pan-world project in eight languages — Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi, Bengali, English and Spanish — on March 26.