Viswanatha Nayakudu (1987), directed by Dasari Narayana Rao, was one of the few period epics during the 80s, before the genre went dormant and was revived much later by Bahubali and Gautamiputra Satkarni.

While it's more of a historical fiction, the movie does deal with real-life events set during the Vijayanagara era. The three main characters here are Krishnadevaraya, his faithful general Nagama Nayaka, and his son Vishwanatha Nayaka. When the Chola ruler Veerashekhara Chola invades and overthrows the Pandya ruler Chandrashekhara Pandya, Rayalavaaru sends Nagamma Nayaka to defeat the Chola ruler. While Nagamma Nayaka succeeds in his mission, the Chola ruler successfully turns him against Rayalavaaru, claiming he is nothing more than a glorified slave of Vijayanagara, asking him what he actually gets for all his loyal service. When no one is willing to take on the rebellious Nagammma Nayaka, it's his son Vishwanatha Nayaka who takes up the challenge, willing to go against his father.

For a movie shot in the 1980s, the production values are quite impressive; the splendour of Vijayanagara, Rayalavaaru's court, is well depicted. The Madurai Nayak dynasty was started by Vishwanatha Nayaka, and he took on his own father. So, the movie does stick to the history well.

The internal dynamics of the Empire, the Pandya versus Chola rivalry, is also brought out well. The starcast is, of course, the biggest asset. Krishnamraju suits Rayalavaaru's role perfectly. His body language, voice and expressions bring the Emperor alive on screen.

Krishna does well in the kind of role that perfectly suits him, both the swashbuckling hero and the son having to choose between father and empire. And Shivaji Ganesan, once again as Nagamma Nayaka, a role with shades of grey, owns the role. He is especially brilliant in the climax scene.

Apart from that, there is a strong supporting cast of Jayaprada, KR Vijaya, Prabhakar Reddy, Ranganath, and Sarath Babu. The movie, however, was not very successful on its release, and I guess that is why Telugu movie makers did not attempt this genre for close to two decades. This is the kind of story that needs a proper remake, as the storyline is quite complex, with betrayals, intrigues, counter intrigues and the moral questions it raises.