Hyderabad, Dec 23 With the arrest of actor Allu Arjun for the death of a woman in a stampede at Sandhya Theatre during the premier show of ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’ and subsequent developments causing a strain in relations with the Telangana government, representatives of the Telugu film industry are planning to meet Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy.
Producer Naga Vamsi said on Monday that a decision on meeting the Chief Minister will be taken after Telangana Film Development Corporation chairman Dil Raju’s return. A leading producer, Dil Raju, who was recently appointed chairman of TFDC by the state government, is currently in the United States.
Terming the incident at Sandhya Theatre as unfortunate, Naga Vamsi said no hero or producer would want such incidents. The producer also denied that the Telugu film industry would shift to neighbouring Andhra Pradesh. He said film shoots are happening in both the states and the government in Andhra Pradesh is also extending cooperation to the industry.
In another move to reach out to the Telangana government, the State Film Chamber of Commerce on Monday appealed to its members to donate money for the family of Revathi, who died in the December 4 incident at Sandhya Theatre while her son Sri Tej was injured.
Film Chamber also held a meeting to discuss the situation arising out of recent developments.
In another development, filmmaker R. Narayana Murthy visited KIMS Hospital on Monday and called on the family of eight-year-old Sri Tej who was critically injured in the stampede while his mother died. This comes after Chief Minister Revanth Reddy targeted both actor Allu Arjun and other film personalities for not meeting the family of the deceased and helping them.
While speaking in Assembly on December 21, Revanth Reddy had come down heavily on Allu Arjun for visiting the theatre without police permission, conducting ‘roadshow’ even after the stampede claimed the life of a woman and critically injured her son, and lacking sensitivity.
The actor also came under flak for not meeting the bereaved family or visiting the injured child in the hospital.
The Chief Minister also found fault with the film personalities who had made a beeline to Allu Arjun’s house to meet him after his release from jail. The Congress government also did not like the actor addressing a press conference a few hours after the Chief Minister’s statement in the Assembly to say that allegations against him are false and that they are aimed at his character assassination.
The next day police released minute-to-minute video footage of the incidents at Sandhya Theatre to dispute Allu Arjun’s claims.
Cinematography Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy had also announced in the Assembly that the government will not allow benefit shows of movies before their release and will also not permit an increase in cinema tickets.
The state government has been allowing an increase in the rates for big-budget movies featuring top stars. It had also permitted an increase in the rates for ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’.
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