'Maharathi' rides to top of Telugu list

Hyderabad, Feb 9 (IANS) Balakrishna starrer "Maharathi" rules the Telugu box office this fortnight. The top five films are:

1. "Maharathi" - Actor Balakrishna has proved to be a big draw despite appearing in a soft role - as a musician - after a long gap. Director P. Vasu seems to have done the trick as the film is a winner with the family audience.

2. "Desamudurul" - The team of director Puri Jaganath and Allu Arjun - they worked together for the first time in "Desamudurul" - has worked well. Despite the not-so-impressive plot, the overall packaging has appealed to the audience. And Chakri's lilting tunes are like icing on the cake.

3. "Annavaram" - Pavan Kalyan's action image has been re-invented to arrest his lean trot. A mix of blood-spilling action and brother-sister sentiment has delivered another hit for the Supergood Films banner.

4. "Rakhi" - NTR Junior's publicity campaign has revived the collections of his comeback film, though critics find it hard to believe that Krishna Vamsi directed this clichéd actioner.

5. "Yogi" - The lacklustre action film has not enhanced director V.V. Vinayak's image. This remake of a Kannada hit could neither boost Prabhas' career nor help launch Easwari Films, a new banner started by the Andhra Pradesh chief minister's brother-in-law P. Ravindranath Reddy in a big way.