Daaku Maharaaj is a 2025 Indian Telugu-language action drama film directed by Bobby Kolli and produced by Sithara Entertainments, Fortune Four Cinemas and Srikara Studios.

The film stars Nandamuri Balakrishna, alongside Bobby Deol, Pragya Jaiswal, Shraddha Srinath, Urvashi Rautela, Rishi, Chandini Chowdary, Pradeep Rawat, Sachin Khedekar, Shine Tom Chacko, Viswant Duddumpudi, Aadukalam Naren and Ravi Kishan.

Daaku Maharaaj was released worldwide on 12 January 2025, coinciding with Sankranti, and received generally positive reviews from both critics and audience.

Manohar absconds confinement and the estate gets seized; Trimurthulu intimidates Krishnamurthy and his family to retreat, but he refuses to budge and enlists police protection.

Govind Gujjar, a dacoit pretending to be a servant of Krishnamurthy, notifies their notorious leader Sitaram alias Daaku Maharaaj, who is imprisoned at a prison in Bhopal, of the family's hardship.

Maharaaj flees from prison with the aid of his henchmen and joins the family as their new driver under the alias Nanaji to protect Vaishnavi and builds a good rapport with her.

Inspector Stephen Raj, a feared encounter specialist, traces Maharaaj and takes him away benevolently without exposing him to the family.

The villagers approach IES officers Sitaram and his wife, Kaveri, for a solution; they figure out that a dam could be built to irrigate their fields, but the Thakur brothers' illegitimate mines pose a hindrance for the project.

An enraged Sitaram goes on a killing spree and pounces on the Thakurs' residence only to find Balwant and his eldest brother absent.

While Bablu and his men search for the pregnant Kaveri on a festival night at a temple, Nandini rescues her from getting caught and speaks to her about Balwant and Minister Udham Singh's secret narcotics trade in the name of marble mining.

With the evidence and Nandini's report, Maharaaj exposes Balwant's trade to the government, leading to the closing of mines and the proposition of a dam in the region gets its approval.

After the release of Chiranjeevi-starrer Waltair Veerayya (2023), its director Bobby Kolli was reported to collaborate with Rajinikanth for a potential film, which would mark his Tamil cinema debut and produced by Dil Raju's Sri Venkateswara Creations.

[18][19] Ravi Kishan, Shine Tom Chacko, Sachin Khedekar, VTV Ganesh, Makarand Deshpande, Sandeep Raj, Harsha Vardhan and Rao Ramesh, were cast in supporting roles.

[35] Paul Nicodemus of The Times of India gave 3.5/5 stars and wrote, "Daaku Maharaaj is a high-octane entertainer that thrives on Nandamuri Balakrishna’s commanding performance, stylish action sequences, and impressive technical values.

"[36] Sashidhar Adivi of Times Now gave 3/5 stars and wrote "On the whole, Daaku Maharaaj starts off promisingly with an engaging first half.

"[37] Avinash Ramachandran of The Indian Express gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "Basically, Daaku Maharaaj had all things in place for a gripping social drama that looks a million bucks, but it crumbles under the weight of the familiar because sound and sight can only do so much to a film that never takes flight.

"[39] Srivathsan Nadadhur of The Hindu wrote "Bobby Kolli’s attempt to dish out a ‘different-looking’ Balakrishna film is a mixed bag.