28 March 2022
Hyderabad
Icon star Allu Arjun has completed two decades as a leading man in the industry, as his maiden film as a hero, Gangothri, directed by K Raghavendra Rao, was released today exactly 20 years ago. A joint production venture between Allu Aravind and Aswini Dutt, Gangothri had a 100-days run at the ticket counters, with praise particularly going to its music and Arjun’s ease as an actor and dancer.
More than a year later, Arjun made everyone sit up and take notice of his explosive potential with Arya, which not just piled on the money but gave him stardom as well. He consolidated on it with a slew of flicks like Bunny, Happy and Desamudhuru, while films like Parugu and Arya 2 explored the actor in him a notch higher. His experiment, Vedam, received plaudits from every corner, while the film failed to cut the mustard at the turnstiles.
While Badrinath was a big setback for him early last decade, he bounced back with Julayi, which cemented his position as one of the leading heroes of T-town. Race Gurram and Sarrainodu enhanced his reputation as a mass hero. With Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo, he managed to set non Baahubali records, bringing himself closer to the family audience in the process, while with Pushpa, he became a pan India sensation.
Reacting to the two-decade milestone, Bunny said he is what he is because “of the love of the audience, admirers & fans”. “Today, I complete 20 years in the film industry. I am extremely blessed & have been showered with love . I am grateful to all my people from the industry . I am what I am bcoz of the love of the audience, admirers & fans . Gratitude forever,” he wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.
His next release is Pushpa: The Rule with Sukumar. The expectations on the project are pretty high all over India and the makers are planning to release the first glimpse video to coincide with the actor’s 41st birthday on April 8th.
Set in the backdrop of red sanders smuggling in the Seshachalam Hills of Andhra Pradesh, Pushpa: The Rule, as the name indicates, will see Pushpa’s reign as he is now the head of smuggling syndicate, while also focusing on his tiff with SP Bhanwar Singh Shekawat (played by Fahadh Faasil) who is keen to settle scores with him after being humiliated (towards the end of the first part). Rashmika Mandanna, Sunil, Anasuya, Jagadeesh, Dhananjaya and Rao Ramesh will be reprising their parts once again. The technical composition includes Devi Sri Prasad (for music) and Miroslaw Kuba (cinematography).
