Actor Allu Arjun's father-in-law and Congress leader Kancherla Chandrashekhar Reddy visited Gandhi Bhavan on Monday, but returned disappointed after he could not meet a 'busy' PCC chief B Mahesh Kumar Goud.
Published Dec 23, 2024 | 7:27 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 23, 2024 | 9:28 PM
Revanth Reddy and Allu Arjun.
Even as Tollywood is reportedly exploring ways to bridge the divide between the film industry and the government following Allu Arjun’s arrest, the A Revanth Reddy-led dispensation in Telangana has been unrelenting in its stand.
Justifying the Pusha 2: The Ruling actor Arjun’s arrest in the Sandhya Theatre stampede case, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had told the state Assembly that the law was equally applicable to all citizens, irrespective of their stardom.
Arjun was arrested on 13 December after a stampede — allegedly created by his 4 December visit to the Sandhya Theatre in Hyderabad — killed a young mother and left her nine-year-old son fighting for his life.
Tollywood, meanwhile, was waiting for the return of Telangana Film Development Corporation chairman Dil Raju from the US, where he has been promoting his movie, Game Changer, starring Ramcharan Teja.
“We are waiting for producer and Telangana Film Development Corporation chairman Dil Raju to return from the US. After his return, we will decide how to move forward with the issue,” produced Naga Vamsi said.
In a separate development, Arjun’s father-in-law and Congress leader Kancherla Chandrashekhar Reddy visited Gandhi Bhavan, the party’s state headquarters, on Monday, 23 December. His visit was reportedly to find a solution to the perceived enmity between the government and Tollywood, specifically Arjun.
However, Chandrasekhar Reddy returned seemingly disappointed since he could not meet the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president B Mahesh Kumar Goud, who was busy in a news conference. Though he briefly met Deepa Dasmunsi, the AICC general secretary in charge of Telangana, she did not show interest in discussing the issue.
Chandrashekhar Reddy did not entertain media queries while returning from Gandhi Bhavan. A long-time BRS leader in Nalgonda’s Nagarjuna Sagar, Chandrashekhar Reddy joined the Congress in February this year.
Later, Mahesh Kumar Goud clarified that Chandrashekhar Reddy had visited Gandhi Bhavan to meet him, but met Deepa Dasmunsi since he was busy with a media conference. The meeting with Dasmunsi was brief since she was not familiar to him.
The PCC president said he contacted Chandrashekhar Reddy after the media conference, and conveyed that he was always available to him to discuss any issue. He said he would discuss the issue with Chandrashekhar Reddy in a day or two.
Meanwhile, Tollywood would likely make a representation to the chief minister after Dil Raju’s return.
Though the industry’s meeting with Revanth Reddy would be to seek permission to hike movie ticket prices and also hold special screenings of Sankranti releases, the confrontation with Tollywood would also be discussed. The industry might seek an end to hostilities.
Producer Naga Vamsi and director Bobby, speaking to media persons on Monday, 23 December, said that the film industry also grieved the death of the woman and wanted to ensure avoiding such incidents in the future.
“It was an unfortunate incident. We will take measures to reduce such incidents to the extent possible. We will work along with the government,” Naga Vamsi said.
He replied in the negative when asked if the film industry would shift to a friendly Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh, considering the tension in Hyderabad.
“I have spent a lot of money on constructing my house. Where would I go?” he asked. He said Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan has been saying that his government would support the Telugu Film industry and it has been doing so since the TDP came to power.
Telangana’s Cinematography Minister Komatiredy Venkata Reddy stated that the government would not allow hiking ticket prices, or holding premiere shows and Revanth Reddy said that he would have to reconsider helping the film industry if they act irresponsibly have unnerved Tollywood. The industry wants a quick end to the faceoff.
Meanwhile, the Chikkadpalli police have summoned Arjun to appear before them for questioning at 11 am on Tuesday, 24 December. The actor has been arraigned as the 11th accused in the stampede case. After his 13 December arrest, he was granted conditional bail for four weeks.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
