If you have seen the 2020 Telugu film Colour Photo, you might have observed the beautiful beach which is a favourite meeting spot for the leads, Suhas and Chandini. The beach was also the site where the emotional climax took place.
Well, this beach is near Pedapatnam, a small coastal village about 25 km from Machilipatnam town in Andhra Pradesh’s Krishna district. Despite its shallow shore that makes it easy for people to enjoy the sea, the beach never saw much of a crowd. However, after the release of Colour Photo, the spot has gained a lot popularity.
It’s not just the Pedapatnam beach that is beautiful, but the drive up to it offers mesmerising views of the mangrove forests that are spread out near the sea. One also finds that the area is filled with green fields and lakes that are used for prawn cultivation.
Mangoves on the way to Pedapatnam
Boats at the shore
An old bridge
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Children playing near fishing nets
"Many people are visiting this beach for the last couple of months. There was a film shooting here, for which actor Sunil had also come to our village," says an enthusiastic old man at the beach, who is a resident of Pedapatnam. Sunil played the antagonist in Colour Photo and had a critical role in the climax.
Tourists at the beach
"Despite Machilipatnam being my native town, I haven't visited this beach before. Recently, I discovered this place after seeing Colour Photo. I was quite surprised to see the beauty of this place, be it on the way or at the beach," says Eshwar, who visited the beach with his friends.
The growing tourism has also offered alternative modes of livelihood for the locals. Earlier, no structures existed along the beach. However, now a few small movable outlets have been set up by the local residents, after they observed the increased footfall.
Naga Malleshwara Rao and Prakashamma, who were originally farmers, have now started selling sweet corn at the beach, after the farm they used to work in was converted into a lake for cultivation of prawns.
Prakashamma selling sweet corn at Pedapatnam
"We started selling sweet corn here only a couple of months ago. We usually come around 10 am and stay till the crowd decreases in the evening. Several people keep coming in four-wheelers and two-wheelers to this beach along with their family and friends. On the weekends, our sweet corn gets sold fast, as the number of tourists is high on those days," says Naga Malleshwara Rao.
Earlier, Pedapatnam beach was a rather unexplored spot, as most people preferred to go to Manginapudi beach, located 15 km from Machilipatnam. Manginapudi beach is a commercial place and has facilities like parking and eateries. However, not much commercial activity is observed at the Pedapatnam beach, with people coming here to witness the sunrise and sunset.
During the COVID-19-induced lockdown, the Manginapudi beach was officially closed for tourists. During this time, people discovered the Pedapatnam beach. So many people started to gather here that the police had to step in for crowd control after requests from those living in the village, recalls a resident.
After Colour Photo, the beach has also become a favourite for those making short films and music videos.
Watch Colour Photo song here: