Bhubaneswar: Odisha’s Koraput district has emerged as a sought-after destination for shooting of movies.

Celebrated director SS Rajamouli’s big-budget movie SSMB29 is now being shot in the scenic Talamali Hills under Semiliguda block in Koraput.

Telugu superstar Mahesh Babu and popular Malayalam actor Prithiviraj Sukumaran have already arrived in Koraput and joined the shooting set.

Shooting for the much-anticipated movie began two days ago amid tight security. Actress Priyanka Chopra is scheduled to join the shooting set later.

Director Rajamouli has chosen scenic spots like Deomali, Talamali and Machhkund as the locations for the shooting of SSMB29, a movie being made with a massive budget of around Rs 1,000 crore.

The Koraput district administration has granted permission to Rajamouli’s team for filming the movie in Talamali and Deomali hills till March 28.

The production team has booked all the lodges at Semiliguda to accommodate its 500-member crew.

Director Rajamouli is well-known for his blockbusters like Baahubali, RRR, Magadheera and Makkhi. Actor Mahesh Babu rose to fame with the massive success of his Telugu movie Pokiri, which has been remade as Wanted in Hindi.

Prithiviraj Sukumaran has several hit movies in Malayalam. He also essayed an important role in Prashanth Neel’s big-budget film Salaar.

Actress Priyanka Chopra has carved a niche for herself not only in Bollywood but also in Hollywood.

It is worth mentioning here that several scenes of blockbuster movie Pushpa-2: The Rule were shot in Malkangiri district of Odisha.

The movie featuring Telugu superstar Allu Arjun were shot in the erstwhile Maoist hotbed of Hantalguda, Saptadhara and Jhulapola areas of Malkangiri. Some local artistes also got an opportunity to act in the movie.

Notably, Pushpa-2 amassed around Rs 1,800 crore at the box office and broke several records.