Fire breaks out at iconic Annapurna studios in Hyderabad, set worth Rs 2 crore damaged

Annapurna studio, owned by the Akkineni family, was gutted is what is believed to be a short circuit in one of the house sets (the one where 2014’s hit Telugu film Manam was shot).

In what could be described as a very unfortunate accident, a major fire mishap at the popular Annapurna Studios on Monday evening left everybody in shock, including its owner Akkineni Nagarjuna, who is otherwise relieved that the incident didn’t result in loss of lives. While the reasons for the fire is yet to be ascertained, police suspect it could be a case of short circuit. Fire broke out at a house set that was used for the Akkineni family’s 2014 Telugu film Manam.

A still from Manam that was shot at the Annapurna Studio.

Speaking to reporters, an emotional Nagarjuna said: “It’s the set where dad (Akkineni Nageswara Rao) had spent most of his last days. It’s unfortunate that it’s no longer there. We had very good memories with the set. Nevertheless, I’m happy that nobody got injured. It’s ok to lose a set over lives. We are still not sure about the cause of the fire.” When asked about the value of the set, he said, “When it was started, it was built on a small scale. We later made it big, so I’m not quite sure about how much it’s worth. It could be around Rs 2 crore.”

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The set was completely gutted in the fire. Four fire engines were engaged in the process to douse the fire. There were also rumours that a set built for Chiranjeevi’s upcoming mega budget period flick Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy was also damaged. However, Nagarjuna didn’t confirm the same when he was asked by the media.

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