Not used to hard-hitting criticism about its ways of functioning, Tollywood got a rude jolt recently courtesy actor Radhika Apte.
In an interview, the Pune-born Radhika described the industry as ‘patriarchial’ and ‘chauvinistic’. She spoke of the preferential treatment accorded to male actors compared to their female co-stars. She even hinted that she would not want to work in the industry again.
What followed next was a barrage of nasty and abusive tweets as well as posts on the social media against the actor by Telugu cinema fans. Many from the industry also objected to her statements, including senior actor Naresh who called her a ‘joker’.
A strange silence is being maintained by the usually-outspoken personalities of the industry, who prefer not to be dragged into the controversy. Radhika had worked in Ram Gopal Verma’s Raktha Charithra in the past. She had also worked in actor Balakrishna’s Legend , and now stars in Lion which has a May release. Sources said it is unlikely that she will be apart of the promotional events of 98th movie of Balakrishna owing to her statements.
Will Andhra Pori turn it around?
Exactly 10 months after Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated and Telangana was born, a director is seeking to create waves with a movie titled Andhra Pori . Pori means lass in the Telangana slang and donning this role is Ulka Gupta, who stars opposite Aakash, the son of filmmaker Puri Jagannadh.
The story is that of a hero from Telangana falling in love with a girl from Andhra and a remake of Timepass , a Marathi film that was a runaway success. The audio is to be launched by the end of April.
Reporting by Rahul Devulapalli & Suresh Krishnamoorthy
