With audiences flocking to Netflix to watch Modha Rathri and showering it with love, the film’s lead character, Maruthu, played by Rishikanth, has got us thinking about a rare quality in modern cinema: chivalry. What makes Maruthu stand out is that his respect for others never feels like a performance. It comes naturally in the way he speaks, behaves, and treats the people around him. As the saying goes, art imitates life, or perhaps, sometimes, life imitates art. Telugu cinema has given us quite a few male characters whose kindness, restraint, emotional maturity, and respect for women made them memorable. Here are some chivalrous characters from Telugu movies we wouldn’t mind meeting in real life.
Chivalrous Characters in Telugu Cinema We Wish Existed in Real Life
1. Kamal Haasan in Sagara Sangamam
Balu is a character whose love is defined as much by what he chooses not to do as by what he does. A gifted dancer who falls for Madhavi, he is ready to confess his feelings when he learns she is already married, though separated from her husband.
Rather than claim his own happiness, he steps aside, carrying his love quietly and letting it consume him. Years later, he teaches Madhavi’s daughter to dance, passing his art on to the next generation. Kamal Haasan plays Balu with restraint, letting silence and movement say what words cannot.
2. Sumanth in Godavari
Sekhar Kammula’s Godavari gave us Sriram, a soft-spoken man whose idea of chivalry has little to do with grand gestures and everything to do with how he treats people. Whether he is helping Chinna, a young boy on the boat, or extending a hand to strangers, he does so without expecting anything in return.
His relationship with Seetha is another reason the character stands out. He respects her independence, career and opinions, treating her as an equal rather than someone to be won over or managed.
3. Siva Balaji in Chandamama
Siva Balaji plays Dhorababu, who is engaged to Mahalakshmi (Kajal Aggarwal). When she confesses that she is still in love with Kishore, the man she was earlier separated from, Dhorababu could easily have reacted with anger or wounded pride. Instead, he keeps her secret and protects her from the consequences she might face if her strict father finds out. He then goes a step further, travelling to the city to find Kishore, and discovers that the couple’s separation was the result of a misunderstanding.
His willingness to put another person’s happiness ahead of his own makes him one of the most memorable characters in Telugu cinema.
4. Siddharth in Bommarillu
Siddhu is affectionate, expressive and, most importantly, capable of admitting when he is wrong. At the heart of his relationship with Hasini is his desire to see her happy. He initially struggles under the influence of his controlling father and, for a brief period, begins imposing some of those expectations on Hasini. His journey, however, is about understanding that loving someone doesn’t mean changing them to fit your idea of an ideal partner.
Siddhu’s greatest strength isn’t that he is perfect, but that he learns to recognise his mistakes and change.
5. Venkatesh in Gharshana
DCP Rama Chandra represents a very different kind of chivalry. He may be tough, intimidating and uncompromising when dealing with criminals, but his relationship with Maya (Asin) reveals a gentler side. His approach isn’t about old-fashioned romance or elaborate gestures. It is rooted in responsibility and a willingness to put the safety of the person he loves before his own.
As generations progress, so does our definition of what is acceptable, but treating people with respect never goes out of style. Instead of glamorising toxic behaviour and unconsciously adopting patterns we later regret, perhaps it’s time audiences looked up to characters who are examples of empathy and compassion, and who respect emotional autonomy over societal expectations.