Satya Dev is a versatile actor known for portraying a wide range of characters, but his role in the upcoming film Rao Bahadur is something he has never attempted before. Following the overwhelming response to the teaser, the team released the first single, O Sundari, which is already topping music charts.
Director Venkatesh Maha revealed that the story was ready back in 2020, but several hurdles delayed its progress. “I gave 70 narrations. At one point, I was close to shelving it. Anurag, Sharath, Namrata, Mahesh Babu, and Gopalakrishna Reddy are my five Avengers who revived this project with unwavering support. Satya is my creative soulmate. He would sit for five hours of makeup every single day. Having an actor like him is our fortune. When audiences walk out of the theatre, we want them to feel something ten times more powerful than C/O Kancharapalem.”
Satya Dev opened up about the emotional and physical transformation required for the role. He shared that he wanted a character that demanded complete surrender. “No one recognized me on set. I behaved like the character even off-camera,” he revealed.
His look required nearly five hours of makeup daily, and the shoot often continued late into the night. “When I asked Maha, he told me this would go on for 80–85 days. That’s how deeply we committed to this world. The song O Sundari, which played on set, offered me some relief. It’s a celebration of womanhood.”
He urged audiences to remember the title: “Rao Bahadur will give you an experience- the kind of scale seen in Baahubali, Avatar, and the upcoming Varanasi. Maha will be celebrated by Indian audiences.”
Satya Dev also sang O Sundari on stage and expressed confidence that Rao Bahadur will become a milestone in his career.
