The film received negative reviews from critics for Trivikram's direction and screenplay, but Thaman's music and Babu's performance were praised.
Ramana rushes to see her; Venkata Swamy reveals to him that Hari Das, a rowdy, and Kata Madhu planned to murder Vasundhara under the guise of the accident.
When Ramana goes to confront Hari Das, he reveals that he never planned the murder with Kata, but his vengeance is towards Venkata Swamy, with whom he set up a business 25 years ago and was eventually backstabbed by him.
Cinematographer P. S. Vinod, editor Naveen Nooli, music composer Thaman S and art director A. S. Prakash were finalised in the technical crew.
After several months of delay, Trivikram presented a new modified script that transformed the film into a family entertainer, departing from the original narrative as an action thriller.
[15][16] Pooja Hegde was initially cast as the lead actress, paired opposite Babu for the second time after Maharshi (2019) as well as in her third collaboration with director, however due to her schedule conflicts, she opted out from the venture and was subsequently replaced by Sreeleela.
[25] The shooting was then halted with Trivikram making modifications to the script and converted the action thriller film into a "family entertainer".
Originally intended for a theatrical release on 28 April 2023, the film's launch was first deferred to 11 August 2023, and then to 13 January 2024, coinciding with Sankranti.
On 31 May 2023, first glimpse was released, on the occasion of Babu's father Krishna's 80th birth anniversary, which was attached with Mosagallaku Mosagadu 4K re-release in theatres.
[38] The film digital distribution rights were acquired by Netflix and premiered from 9 February 2024 in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi.
[39] The film received generally negative reviews from critics criticising its direction, screenplay, plot, background score and soundtrack, but Babu's performance was praised.
[40] Anandu Suresh of The Indian Express gave 2/5 stars and wrote "Mahesh Babu, in top-notch form, is the sole redeeming factor in Trivikram's unnecessarily prolonged film, preventing it from becoming a tedious watch.
"[41] BVS Prakash from Deccan Chronicle gave 2/5 stars and wrote "director Trivikram Srinvas fails to come up with a solid script to justify the larger-than-life image of Mahesh Babu.
"[42] Abhilasha Cherukuri of Cinema Express gave 2/5 stars and wrote "the film was a two-and-half hour-long advertisement for the Vijayawada-Hyderabad expressway.
Outside of an expansive B-roll displaying well-maintained roads in not one but two Telugu states, the rest of Guntur Kaaram is mere filler.
"[43] Neeshita Nyayapati of Hindustan Times called it a "bland film" and wrote "Guntur Kaaram feels like a wasted opportunity.
"[44] Reviewing the film, Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of The Hindu wrote "Director Trivikram Srinivas and Mahesh Babu’s ‘Guntur Kaaram’ is a stale rehash of old stories".