Hyderabad, 25th February, 2023: ZEE5 has been relentlessly dishing out a wide variety of content in various formats in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali and other languages. ZEE5 has made a name for itself nationwide as a prominent streaming platform since its inception. After presenting the comedy-drama ‘Oka Chinna Family Story’ from Pink Elephant Pictures, ‘Loser 2’ from Annapurna Studios stable, ‘Gaalivaana’ from BBC Studios and NorthStar Entertainment, ‘Recce’, ‘Hello World’, ‘Maa Neella Tank’, ‘Aha Naa Pellanta’ and most recently ‘ATM’, it is now streaming ‘Puli-Meka’. The streaming giant has collaborated with Kona Film Corporation on this promising web series.
The Original started streaming on ZEE5 on February 23 evening. Following the superb response that it received, a press meet was held in Hyderabad by the team.
Speaking on the occasion, Aadi Saikumar began by thanking Kona Venkat, the show’s creator and writer. He also thanked the team at ZEE5. “An OTT offer came my way before the lockdown. When I was in two minds, the lockdown happened. When Kona garu offered ‘Puli Meka’ a few days later, I really loved the script and the characterization. I was told Lavanya is the leading character. I appreciate director Chakri garu’s execution. I have made a very good debut on OTT. Thanks to ZEE5 for giving me such a good opportunity. My relatives in the US, including my mother, have loved the show. Lavanya’s acting is brilliant. She worked hard on the action scenes. Siri Hanmanth also acted well. Raja Chembolu and Noel Sean have been so good. There is no vulgarity in the show. All families can enjoy it together. The series is engaging and impressive,” he added.
Lavanya Tripathi thanked Kona Venkat for bringing such a nice project her way. She also said that the director’s work is wonderful. “Also a special thanks to all the guests who came and supported our event. Adi Saikumar’s performance is subtle. Thanks to ZEE5 and the team that supported me,” she added.
Kona Venkat said, “All the actors I have worked with as a first-time writer have tasted blockbusters. The same sentiment holds true for Aadi. ‘Puli Meka’ is a big blockbuster that has been eliciting positive feedback from the US, UK and other countries like Germany. Be it Lavanya or Aadi, every artist has done an extraordinary job. And everyone is appreciating the screenplay. After seeing Lavanya’s acting, the viewers are genuinely surprised. Also, when it comes to Aadi, it is very difficult to look naive on the one hand and quick-witted on the other hand. He did his homework for sure. Lavanya, on her part, took every scene as a challenge. Everyone has worked really hard.”
Sushmita Konidela said, “Congratulations to ZEE5 for turning good concepts into originals and keeping their patrons engaged. On this occasion, I congratulate Kona Venkat garu for choosing the cute and sweet Lavanya Tripathi for the role of a powerful police officer. Her performance is really amazing. Kona garu is a brilliant story-teller. If he is the showrunner, there was never any doubt that the show was going to be fab. It is a good development to see new-age concepts on OTT.” She ended the speech by congratulating director Chakravarthy Reddy and others.
Guest and director Chandra Siddharth said, “Anyone who knows Telugu folklore will connect with the title ‘Puli Meka’. Using such a rooted title for the crime and investigative thriller was a nice idea.”
Writer and guest BVS Ravi said, “Thanks to ZEE5 for making this series. Congratulations to director Chakri for showing Lavanya as a monster and a beauty. Kona garu has produced many successful films as a writer. And this investigative thriller mirrors his talent and abilities.”
Director and guest Kalyan Krishna praised Kona Venkat. “He not only wrote this original but is also its creator. With Chakri in tow, the content became all the more strong. Lavanya Tripathi is seen in a new avatar. I congratulate everyone including Adi Saikumar.”
Noel Sean said, “I feel very lucky to work under Kona Venkat garu’s direction. I saw how difficult the director’s job was. Also, thanks to the team for giving such a big success to all of us. I have always wanted to work with Aadi garu. With this series, I finally got to. Lavanya has many fans out there. And I am one of them. This series has impressed one and all. Lavanya has engaged everyone in a powerful role.”
Hemant Madhukar said, “I know how dedicated Kona garu is. I got interested when I came to know that he is doing a thriller web series. I totally loved the trailer as soon as I saw it. I immediately called him and told him it is extraordinary. Both Lavanya and Aadi acted brilliantly. Chakri’s treatment is engaging.”
Director Siva Nirvana said, “Kona Venkat garu is my godfather. It is possible for him to bring so many actors onto a project and get things done. The characters played by Lavanya Tripathi and Aadi Saikumar are very gripping. It was pleasantly surprised to see Lavanya doing so much action. Aadi Saikumar must be congratulated for backing good content. Congratulations to him. I know director Chakri as a commercial director. He has now proved himself as the maker of a thriller.”
ZEE5 content head Sai Tej said, “I said on the day of the trailer’s release that Kona Venkat has created a wonderful series. Everyone is thoroughly engaged by the whodunit. If you want to know who the murderer is, you have to subscribe to ZEE5 and watch it. In ZEE5, we offer a Sankranti every month.”
Siri Hanmanth said, “No matter how many times I thank Kona Venkat garu, it is not enough. They saw me in the Bigg Boss show and created a character for me. And our director Chakri garu is a cool, composed person.”
Srihan said that the series is very engaging. “I started watching an episode and binge-watched it. Kona garu has designed the script so well. Also thanks to ZEE5 for selecting such a good script for the series. Lavanya Tripathi acted without any dupe in the action scenes. Adi Saikumar’s innocent character is entertaining. I sincerely wish that ZEE5 continues to entertain the audience with good scripts in the future as well,” he added.
Chammak Chandra, Priyanka Singh, Manik Reddy and others were present.
