Pawan Kalyan Says He Wanted To Quit Films In 2006: ‘The Problem With Me Is...'

News18

5 days ago

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Pawan Kalyan says that going forth, he wants to become a full-time politician and remain in the movies only as a producer. He now intends to 'activate' his production house.
Much conversation is happening regarding superstar and Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Pawan Kalyan's retirement plans from the world of cinema. In fact, he was semi-retired from the movies when producer AM Rathnam approached him to play the protagonist in Hari Hara Veera Mallu, which is set to release in theatres today. For the unversed, in March 2014, Kalyan founded the Janasena Party and and then he continued his political career alongside his film career as an actor.
Now, Kalyan exclusively tells News18 Showsha that he indeed plans on taking a complete retirement from the movies and focus solely on helping the society as a politician. Talking about how his plans of retirement had occurred to him as early as 2006, he says, 'I'll definitely retire. I would love to retire. I never thought that I would continue to do films for this long. By 2006-2007, I wanted to quit films. I had actually thought that I'll direct five films and then quit the industry."
However, the commercial failure of his debut directorial that released in 2003 derailed his plans. 'If my first film as a director, Johnny, wouldn't have performed at the box office the way I wanted it to, I would've directed four more films, quit cinema, venture into politics and keep serving the society. I always wanted to quit cinema but the problem with me is, I didn't plan any alternate financial source. That's the only reason I had to continue doing films till now," Kalyan remarks.
Going forward, he wants to finish his acting commitments and then become a full-time politician and remain a part of the movies only as a producer. The actor has already wrapped OG and Ustaad Bhagat Singh and only has Hari Hara Veera Mallu: Part 2 remaining. 'I may not do more films as an actor but I want to definitely do film production. I've a production house. I never activated it but I think that now is the time. I haven't signed anything else after OG and Ustaad Bhagat Singh. I've finished all the films," he says.
Spilling the beans on the second part of his latest release, Kalyan tells us, 'I've to just give a few more days for part two and then I'll be done. Part 2 will happen soon. It has to happen. Around 20 percent of the second part of the film has already been shot. After that, I can dedicate more time for my career as a politician. Even after the shoot of Hari Hara Veera Mallu began, I had to invest more time as a politician and my film career took a backseat."
As for Hari Hara Veera Mallu, he's relieved that the film is finally out. 'It took five years for the film to finish. It gives me a sense of great relief. It feels like a weight has been taken off my chest. If my film will be shelved or even get made – I had those fears without a doubt. The burden of finance truly brings down a film," he says. It also stars Bobby Deol and Nidhhi Agerwal.
First Published:
July 24, 2025, 04:52 IST
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