Aapathbandhavudu is the third movie which came in the combination of Chiranjeevi and classical director K. Viswanath. Unlike the previous movies, Subhalekha and Swayamkrushi, Aapathbandhavudu was not a commercially successful movie. Released on 9 October 1992, the movie followed the immensely successful Chiranjeevi's movie Gharana Mogudu (which was a mass masala entertainer) and disappointed his fans as his character is one of self pity and is totally deglamorized. But the movie did win critical acclaim especially for Chiranjeevi and did get him that year's Nandi Award for Best Actor. He narrowly missed out that year's National Film Award for Best Actor.