A major fire broke out at Tollywood’s famous Annapurna Studios in Hyderabad’s Banjara Hills, on Monday evening. It is believed to have occurred between 5.30 and 6 pm on two film sets.

One of the sets, which is a beautiful house, was erected for the superhit Telugu film ‘Manam’ that featured three generations of the Akkineni family.

The other set is for Chiranjeevi’s ‘Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy’, an upcoming period flick based on the life of legendary freedom fighter Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy, which also stars Amitabh Bachchan, Nayanthara and several others.

While the cause of the fire is not confirmed yet, some reports say that a short circuit is the reason for the fire. Four fire tenders are on the spot, said news agency.

Media reports state that two film sets, made of wood, caught fire and the fire spread quickly. Studio staff initially tried to put out the fire with the available extinguishers but had to call fire tenders for help, which arrived late due to peak hour traffic. The fire tenders apparently had to enter through the back door.

TV reports say that the sets have been completely burnt.

It is also reported that quite a number of people were present at the studio today as it is a regular spot for shooting serials, reality shows and films. They were later evacuated. No loss of life has been reported.

The Akkineni family, who built the house featured in ‘Manam’, let the set remain as it was the last shooting spot of the late Akkineni Nageswara Rao. The house has since then been used for various other films.

In 2011 and 2013 too, there were fire accidents at Annapoorna Studios.

Further details are awaited.