Anji is a 2004 Indian Telugu-language fantasy action-adventure film directed by Kodi Ramakrishna and produced by Shyam Prasad Reddy.

[1] The story follows Anji's quest to safeguard the mystical Aatmalingam, which bestows immortality every 72 years, from the grasp of the ruthless billionaire Veerendra Bhatia.

[3] Anji received praise for its visual effects and Chiranjeevi's performance, but struggled to achieve commercial success due to its high budget.

In 1932, during the colonial rule in India a youngster named Veerendra Bhatia with two greedy tantriks is in search of the Atmalingam from a cave which is guarded by a divine trisulam and a gigantic cobra.

While escaping from Bhatia, she runs into Anji, a good Samaritan in the Uravakonda forest area, who serves the most revered Sivanna, an ayurvedic specialist, while also raising four orphans.

[7] A subsequent report in Zamin Ryot a week later revealed that Shyam Prasad Reddy had already traveled to the United States four times to finalize the graphics work for the project but named D. Sabapathy as the director instead.

[8] In December 1998, India Today revealed that Tinu Anand would portray a centenarian searching for a magic potion that promises eternal youth.

[16] When questioned about the lengthy production process, director Kodi Ramakrishna noted that the extensive graphics work justified the four-year timeline.

The report also noted that the film was shot entirely in a forest and revolves around a search for Akasa Ganga, a mystical site containing a powerful Siva Lingam.

[18] In May 2002, producer Shyam Prasad Reddy anticipated completing the graphics work for Anji by 30 July, aiming for a release shortly after 15 August.

[19] However, by August, the graphics work was still in progress at Digitalia in the UK, prompting a shift in potential release dates to the Dasara festival in 2002 or Sankranthi in 2003.

Producer Shyam Prasad Reddy announced plans to release the film on 9 January 2003 but acknowledged potential delays if the visual effects required additional time.

The report also stated that the film's budget was ₹35 crore, including extended production expenses and interest, and that Anji needed to surpass the success of Indra (2002) to recover its costs.

[5][24] Firefly Creative Studio handled the visual effects for the closing battle, the Lord Siva temple, one of the romantic songs, and the Maha Sivaratri festival scene.

The confusion arose because the decision to postpone the release was made late on the night of 7 January, and by the time the news was communicated to the media, Vaartha had already printed its editions.