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Hindustan Times
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Chiranjeevi is bored of commercial tropes and wants to break clichés, says Kona Venkat
Actor Chiranjeevi might be known for headlining commercial potboilers like Shankar Dada MBBS and Khaidi No 150 today, but there was a time when he was known for starring in concept-oriented films like Swayam Krushi and Rudraveena, making him a fan favourite. Filmmaker Kona Venkat revealed in an interview with Galatta Telugu that Chiranjeevi is tired of the same old clichés and is itching to do a 'normal character' now. (Also Read: How Chiranjeevi's Shankar Dada MBBS helped a woman self-diagnose Type 1 diabetes. Watch) When asked why Chiranjeevi is doing only commercial films now, Kona admitted that even the actor is tired of playing variations of the mass hero. He said, 'Even he feels like, how long will they cut to show a dramatic flashback? He says he can't do it anymore. He also wonders why he can't play a normal character. When will I make new films? I am bored, he says. He wants to break the cliché, break the routine. Do something out of the box. I told him, annayya (brother), you can't do out-of-the-box films, you need to do box office films.' He then pointed out that while films like Swayam Krushi give them personal satisfaction, he is also liable to ensure that his producer makes profits. 'Take Swayam Krushi (1987) for example, and other films that gave him satisfaction as an actor. What happened to them at the box office? If we can make Swayam Krushi today with a smaller budget, he'd still do it. But it'll run only in multiplexes because the mass audience will wonder why there are no action scenes or item songs.' Kona also pointed out that budgets for films have gone up significantly, with everything taking at least 150-170 days to shoot versus the usual 40 days it once took. Chiranjeevi's 2023 film Waltair Veerayya was a hit, but Bholaa Shankar failed to make a mark at the box office. He will soon star in Malladi Vassishta's Vishwambhara, which was supposed to be released in theatres for Sankranthi. He has also said yes to films by Anil Ravipudi and Srikanth Odela.
Indian Express
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Chiranjeevi was ‘humiliated' when stars like Sivaji Ganesan were ignored at National Awards while Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar were celebrated: ‘It was like an insult'
Chiranjeevi has been a part of Indian movies for almost 50 years now and continues to be one of the most significant cultural figures of Telugu cinema. But despite being one of the most loved stars of the country, Chiranjeevi felt 'insulted' and 'humiliated' when he visited New Delhi for the National Awards ceremony in 1989. Chiranjeevi shared that when his film Rudraveena was honoured with the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration, he realised that bureaucrats in the government in Delhi saw 'Hindi cinema as Indian cinema' and he saw this as an insult towards the other cinema industries of the country. At the pre-release event for his film Acharya in 2022, Chiranjeevi recalled that he was invited for a high tea ceremony by the government in 1989 before the National Awards ceremony. He recalled looking at a wall that celebrated the icons of cinema like Prithviraj Kapoor, Raj Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan but omitted legends like Sivaji Ganesan and Raj Kumar. 'I kept walking in expectation to see something on south films. However, there was only a still of MGR with Jayalalithaa and a photo of Prem Nazir. They titled it as South Films. Just that. They did not recognise stalwarts like Raj Kumar or Vishnuvardhan or NT Ramarao or Nageshwara Rao or Sivaji Ganesan or even the legendary filmmakers of our industries. I felt very humiliated at that moment. It was like an insult. They portrayed Hindi cinema as Indian cinema. While other films were categorised as 'regional films' and were not given respect,' he recalled. Chiranjeevi said that he spoke about it back then as well but did not get a satisfactory response. Chiranjeevi brought this up again Aha's special Fireside Chat with Rajeev Masand in 2024 where he shared that photos of stars like Dilip Kumar were hung on those walls but many stars from the south were ignored. 'From the South, there were photos of legendary Kannada superstar Rajkumar, and Tamil legend MGR. I felt bad that photos of our very own NT Rama Rao garu and Akkineni Nageswara Rao garu, and even Sivaji Ganesan sir weren't there,' he said. Chiranjeevi felt that the idea of Hindi cinema representing the entirety of Indian cinema was unfair but he was proud that after SS Rajamouli's Baahubali, things had started to change as films from other industries were not restricted by regional boundaries anymore. ALSO READ | 10 years of Bombay Velvet: Anurag Kashyap's messy love letter to cinema that was never understood In the last few years, the conversation around Hindi vs South cinema has gained momentum. In 2024, Pushpa 2 made more money in Hindi than its Telugu version. It was also the biggest Hindi grosser of the year, leaving behind films like Stree 2 and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3.
