General · EdgepediaOctober 3, 20266 min read

Constable Kanakam

Constable Kanakam (కానిస్టేబుల్ కనకం) is an Indian Telugu-language mystery crime thriller web series created, written, and directed by Prasanth Kumar Dimmala, starring Varsha Bollamma in the title role of a village police constable. It premiered on the ETV Win streaming platform on August 14, 2025, and ran for a first season of six episodes before returning with a second season of four episodes on January 8, 2026.¹^•²^•³

Key fact	Detail
Format	Telugu drama-mystery web series, average runtime about 29 minutes per episode, produced for ETV Win²
Seasons	Season 1: 6 episodes from August 14, 2025; Season 2: 4 episodes from January 8, 2026²^•³
Lead	Varsha Bollamma as Kanaka Mahalakshmi, known as Kanakam, a constable posted to Repalle⁴
Setting	The village of Repalle in Srikakulam district during the 1990s, centered on a forbidden forest area called Adavi Gutta⁴
Key crew	Music by Suresh Bobbili, cinematography by Sriram Mukkapati, editing by Madhav Kumar Gullapalli, production design by Vishnu Vardhan Pulla¹
Producers	Kovelamudi Satya Saibaba and Vemuri (also spelled Veturi) Hemanth Kumar, under Meteor Entertainments in association with ETV Win¹
IMDb rating	6.6/10 from about 4,200 user ratings⁵
Theatrical follow-up	A third installment, Constable Kanakam: Kalghat – Chapter 3, announced in January 2026 as a theatrical film⁶

Spoilers

Plot and setting

The story is set in Repalle, a remote village in Srikakulam district, during the 1990s. The village borders a forest area called Adavi Gutta, and women who enter it go missing one after another, leaving the village in fear; the villagers respond by restricting anyone from going there.⁴ Kanaka Mahalakshmi, known as Kanakam, is posted as a constable in Repalle, and the series presents her as the first woman constable from her village.²

The investigation becomes personal when Kanakam's friend Chandrika (Megha Lekha) goes missing, an event for which Kanakam is partly responsible in the story. Her search for Chandrika and for the truth behind the disappearances drives the plot, with the first season ending on the cliffhanger question "Where is Chandrika?"⁴^•³ Season 2 continues the search for Chandrika and the wider mystery of the missing girls, with the police drawn into what one review described as a complex web of deceit.⁷

The trailer, released on August 8, 2025, frames the village as a folk-tale jungle of archetypes, the lion, the fox, and the wolf, before introducing Kanakam as the deer, initially vulnerable and out of place, who gradually takes control of the story.⁸ Reviews noted that the 1990s setting is used to show how women were treated dismissively in that period, and that the series touches on superstition and black magic alongside the crime investigation.⁹^•¹⁰

Production

ETV Win announced on December 2, 2024, that the series had gone on floors, with Varsha Bollamma in the titular role of the constable and Rajeev Kanakala in a crucial role. The series is bankrolled by Kovelamudi Satya Saibaba and Hemanth Kumar under the banner of Meteor Entertainments in association with ETV Win.¹ The full cast also includes Megha Lekha, Srinivas Avasarala, Ramana Bhargav, Kancharapalem Kishore, Jwala Koti, Rakendu Mouli, Prem Sagar, and Suchitraa Anandan; Santosh Annaparthi serves as creative producer and Murali Krishna Katta as co-director.¹¹ A Telugu newspaper profile reported that Rajeev Kanakala plays a head constable in the series.¹²

Plagiarism dispute with Zee5

In June 2025, before the series premiered, its makers publicly accused Zee5's Telugu original Viraatapalem: PC Meena Reporting of plagiarizing their screenplay. Director Prasanth Kumar Dimmala said he had earlier pitched the project to Zee5 and mailed the full screenplay, that the project was canceled abruptly, and that people he had pitched to later made the Zee5 series with his content. The makers stated that the script was officially registered in 2022, that production of Constable Kanakam began in December 2024, and that they had approached the court.¹³

Zee5 issued a statement denying the allegations. It noted that Dimmala had instituted a suit alleging copyright infringement, criticized his holding a press conference while the matter was sub judice, and said that under an interim court order dated June 25 a preview of the series had been made available to him to assess any resemblance. Zee described the makers' actions as reckless and irresponsible and said it was contemplating criminal proceedings over the livestreamed press conference.¹⁴ The team promoted the series with the tagline "ORIGINALLY MADE," which trade commentary read as an indirect jab at the rival camp.⁴

Release and seasons

Season 1 began streaming on ETV Win from the night of August 14, 2025, with the first episode available for free.¹⁵^•⁸ The Season 2 trailer was launched by director Nag Ashwin, and the new season premiered on January 8, 2026, exclusively on ETV Win; ahead of the launch, the platform made all Season 1 episodes free for a day.³^•¹⁶ The series is also among ETV Win titles made available with Dolby Atmos sound.¹⁷

Reception

Audience and critical responses differed in degree but agreed on the lead performance. On IMDb the series holds a 6.6/10 rating from about 4,200 users.⁵ 123telugu rated Season 1 at 2.75/5, praising Varsha Bollamma's performance, the background score, and the cinematography while finding the plotline familiar and the investigation stretches dull; NTV Telugu rated it 2/5.⁹^•¹⁸ A Cinema Express review called it a watchable cop thriller with more hits than misses and found Bollamma impressive as a protagonist who is not an invincible, steely figure until the final episode.¹⁹ 123telugu rated Season 2 at 3/5, calling it a decent watch for crime-thriller fans despite an abrupt ending.³ A Telugu daily review of Season 2 called it a worthy sequel that expands the story universe with twists and solid performances.²⁰

Theatrical continuation

In January 2026, after two seasons, the makers announced that the third installment would move from the digital space to a full-fledged theatrical release under the title Constable Kanakam: Kalghat – Chapter 3. Director Prashanth confirmed the theatrical plan, said the story is entirely fictional despite familiar locations, and stated that Rajeev Kanakala, Avasarala Srinivas, and Megha Lekha play other key roles; producer Sai Baba said the team was prepared for the larger budget a theatrical experience demands.⁶

References

Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › International serial drama and telenovelas › South and Southeast Asian serials › Telugu serials

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026

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