All Telugu films postponed till Sankranthi!
Following the unsavoury political developments in Andhra Pradesh for the last few days (related to the proposed move by the Central Government to form a separate Telangana state), almost all Telugu films scheduled to hit the screens during this season have been postponed until Sankranthi!
Big budget films like NTR starrer Adurs, Nagarjuna's Kedi, Shambho Shiva Shambho of Ravi Teja and Namo Venkatesha starring Venkatesh were to hit screens during this period in addition to Rana's debut film Leader. According to sources, the filmmakers now prefer to adopt a wait-and-watch policy rather than release the films.
They feel there is no point in releasing their films now as the closure of cinema halls and volatile atmosphere will definitely impact the collections adversely. The biggest crisis they also face is to make their stand clear at the division-of-the-state fever which is building up.
Earlier, mega star-turned-politician Chiranjeevi had to face stiff protest from activists of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) after he reportedly expressed his decision to oppose the move to form a separate Telangana state. The activists forcibly stopped the screening of Magadheera and Arya 2, featuring Chiranjeevi’s son Ram Charan Teja and his relative Allu Arjun respectively.
"It’s a Catch 22 situation. In this emotionally charged atmosphere, any statement in favour or against will add fuel to the fire," a distributor said on Wednesday. To overcome the crisis, the industry is planning to a joint appeal to people and politicians of all warring sides not to link the personal stands of stars to the release of their respective films.
