Allu Aravind is well-known for his balanced speech and cautious approach. He usually avoids controversies and maintains a low profile. However, recently he seemed to get a bit carried away.
As the presenter of the upcoming film “Thandel,” Aravind has been very active in its promotions—even dancing on stage twice, which is quite unusual for him. In his excitement, he seemingly made an offhand comment about his nephew’s film, “Game Changer,” suggesting it might be a disaster. This comment has not sat well with the mega fans, especially given the already strained relationship between Allu Arjun (fondly known as Bunny) and the mega fanbase.
Aravind’s remark has exacerbated the tension, leading to a backlash from the fans. Several films such as “Kalki,” “Devara,” “Pushpa 2,” and “Game Changer” have managed to survive online trolling thanks to robust digital support teams. However, “Thandel” does not have such strong online backing, particularly because Naga Chaitanya, one of its lead actors, lacks a solid fan base on social media.
If “Thandel” fails to garner unanimous praise, the trolling could be severe, and Aravind’s hasty comment may only worsen the situation. Global Star Ram Charan has tasted his first bitter pill after renaming himself with that title. His film “Game Changer” has turned out to be an outright disaster, which is even more glaring considering it followed the massive success of “RRR.” The intense rivalry between NTR and Mega fans has only amplified the impact of this failure, making the situation more inconvenient for Charan.
To make matters worse, “Game Changer” keeps coming up at other movie events. Recently, Dil Raju himself admitted that the film’s box office collection posters were fake during the “Sankranthiki Vasthunam” success event. Last night, Allu Aravind, while sharing the stage with Dil Raju, made a lighthearted remark saying that Dil Raju had experienced both the lowest and highest moments in just one week, followed by income tax raids, which he delivered with a big laugh.
This immediately triggered a section of Mega fans, who saw it as a mockery of Ram Charan. Given the existing rivalry between Allu Arjun fans and Mega fans, Aravind’s comment and laughter at the result further upset them. However, anyone who watched the video objectively would see that it wasn’t meant to insult Ram Charan or “Game Changer,” but rather a light joke between two senior producers about the ups and downs of recent films.
But fans, being fans, are adamant to see it that way. While “Game Changer’s” result or the financial damage to buyers cannot be changed, they are now targeting Allu Aravind, accusing him of blocking “Magadheera” from being released in other languages despite Rajamouli’s insistence. They claim that if Aravind had allowed it, the film would have been a pan-India blockbuster, and now he is mocking “Game Changer’s” failure.
Allu Aravind’s surprising stage remarks
One thing is certain—while a veteran producer like Allu Aravind may not have intended to mock Ram Charan publicly, the Telugu industry is simply not accustomed to self-satire or jokes about failures, unlike Bollywood. Traditionally, Tollywood producers maintain that even disaster films have met expectations, recovered budgets, or at least try to downplay failures.
Self-satire or satires on other producer’s flops is rare. Ironically, it was Allu Aravind who moved his film “Thandel” out of the Sankranthi race to give space to Ram Charan’s “Game Changer” as a favor to him. Yet he has now become a target over what was meant to be a lighthearted joke.
At a pre-release event for the upcoming film Thandel, veteran producer Allu Aravind made headlines with remarks perceived as a dig at fellow producer Dil Raju’s recent failures. Speaking on Sunday, Aravind commented on the ups and downs in Raju’s career, particularly highlighting the disappointing performance of the S Shankar-directed action film starring Ram Charan and Kiara Advani, which is backed by Dil Raju. In a video making the rounds on social media, Aravind is seen gesturing to indicate the contrasting fortunes of Raju’s projects, subtly referring to the film Game Changer.
He remarked, “Dil Raju made history recently. One movie of his was like this (gestures down), while another was like this (gestures up). He got raided by the Income Tax department.
A lot happened in a week,” he said, smiling. The internet was divided over Aravind’s comments. While some users condemned the remarks, others defended him.
One user unearthed an old clip of Aravind’s son, actor Allu Arjun, admitting he once rejoiced over a failed film, suggesting such attitude runs in the family. Comments ranged from “They are trolling Dil Raju now? Hahahah” to “Not a single appreciation tweet by any mega fans for Pushpa 2 success, but Allu Arjun and his father should always support them.
What stupid logic?”
Despite the controversy, many defended Aravind, pointing to his handling of his son’s recent success. Allu Arjun-starrer Pushpa 2: The Rule, directed by Sukumar and produced by Mythri Movie Makers, emerged as one of the biggest hits domestically after its release last year. In the midst of this social media storm, Aravind is busy preparing for his next production, Thandel, set to hit cinemas on February 3.
There was an anticipation that Allu Arjun would attend the pre-release event as a special guest, but Aravind explained that the actor was unable to make it due to extreme gastritis after returning from an overseas shoot. Thandel is much awaited by fans and the industry alike, setting the stage for another potential hit from the veteran producer’s stable.