The theatres bandh issue has stirred up intense discussions within the film industry. This issue took a new turn yesterday after Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan released a strongly worded letter. In it, he criticized the film industry for not showing initiative in meeting the Chief Minister even after a year in power and sarcastically thanked them for the “return gift.” The letter quickly became a talking point.
In response, Sr producer Allu Aravind held a special press meet today to share his perspective. He addressed several important matters, especially the ongoing criticism around a group often referred to as ‘Aa Naluguru’ who allegedly dominate the Telugu film industry.
Aravind firmly stated that he is not part of this so-called ‘Aa Naluguru’. “People have been highlighting these four individuals for the past fifteen years, but I was never one of them,” he clarified. He further mentioned that he doesn’t own theatres in Andhra Pradesh or Telangana, apart from a stake in AAA Cinemas in Hyderabad. He owns fewer than 15 screens on lease in Andhra Pradesh and has no plans to renew them going forward.
Touching on the theatre shutdown, Aravind pointed out that announcing it right before a major Pawan Kalyan release was an irresponsible move. He also agreed with Pawan Kalyan’s suggestion that the industry should have met with Chandrababu Naidu much earlier. “That was a mistake,” he admitted.
While answering various questions from the press, Aravind repeatedly said that that he is not part of any power group. He explained that drastic steps like theatre shutdowns should only be taken when all other options are exhausted. “I distanced myself from recent meetings because I didn’t agree with how abruptly the decision was made,” he said.
Now, all eyes are on how other producers and distributors will respond to Aravind’s statements.
Pressmeet on :
– ‘ఆ నలుగురు’లో నేను లేను…
– తెలుగు రాష్ట్రాల్లో 1500 Theatres ఉంటే….
నాకు 15 Theatres కూడా లేవు.
– సినిమా వస్తున్నప్పుడు థియేటర్లు బంద్ అనడం దుస్సాహసమే.
– ఆయన ‘రిటర్న్ గిఫ్ట్’ అనడంలో తప్పు ఏమీ లేదు.”
