Amaravati, Dec 30: Law is equal for all, said Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Monday in his first reaction to the stampede at Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre which claimed the life of a woman during the premier show of ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’, and the subsequent arrest of actor Allu Arjun.

The actor-politician feels that police can’t be blamed as they act keeping safety and security in mind.

In an informal chat with reporters, the Jana Sena leader said that the theatre staff should have informed Allu Arjun in advance about the situation.

Pawan Kalyan was also of the opinion that if somebody from Allu Arjun’s side had reached out to the family of the victim immediately, this could have eased the tension and helped resolve the issue.

This was the first reaction of Pawan Kalyan to the December 4 incident that had led to the death of a woman and left her son critically injured.

The police had booked the theatre management, Allu Arjun and his team for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

The actor was arrested on December 13 and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days by a court. The Telangana High Court granted him interim bail the same day.

Allu Arjun is son of producer Allu Arvind, brother-in-law of Pawan Kalyan’s elder brother megastar Chiranjeevi.

Pawan Kalyan mentioned that in the past, even Chiranjeevi used to attend movie screenings with his fans, but he often wore a mask to avoid creating a stir.

Defending Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on the issue, Pawan Kalyan described him as a leader who has risen from humble beginnings.

Commenting on Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, Pawan said, “Revanth Reddy is a great leader. He came up from a humble beginning. He didn’t do like YSRCP. He allowed benefit shows and permitted increases in ticket prices. The collections of movies rose with his cooperation,” he said.

The Deputy Chief Minister said movies like ‘Salar’ and ‘Pushpa 2’ recorded huge collections. “CM Revanth extended full cooperation for ‘Pushpa 2’. Allowing increase in ticket prices also amounts to encouraging the film industry. In this case, I am not fully aware of what happened in front of or behind the scenes,” he added.

The actor-politician also refused to find fault with the police. “Law is equal for all. Police can’t be blamed in such incidents. They act keeping in mind the security. Theatre staff should have informed Allu Arjun in advance about the situation. When he had taken the seat, they should have informed him and escorted him out,” he said.

Pawan Kalyan also feels that it would have been better if someone from Allu Arjun’s side had reached out to the victim’s family. “They should have immediately assured the family that they will stand by them. They should have expressed regret over the incident that happened unintentionally. Somewhere the humane approach was missing in this case,” he said.

He believes that there was public anger after no one consoled the victim’s family. He also hastened to add that Allu Arjun too felt that a life was lost because of him.

“Cinema is a team work. It’s not correct to blame Allu Arjun alone. Revanth Reddy responded as the Chief Minister to the incident. Sometimes decisions are taken depending on the situation,” he added.

Mumbai, Dec 28: The teaser of the upcoming Salman Khan-starrer ‘Sikandar’ was unveiled on Saturday. It sets the tone for a quintessential Salman Khan film as the Bollywood superstar packs a punch.

The teaser begins with Salman walking into a hall decorated with guns and artifacts. The superstar’s back faces the camera with the hall dimly lit. The knights in armour are soon revealed to be assassins.

Salman goes on to say, “Suna hai bahut saare log mere peecche pade hain. Bas mere mudne ki der hai”.

The assassins deploy their weapons and attack Salman but he tackles all of them, setting the stage for a high-voltage showdown. Salman brims with charisma, power, and his trademark swag in the teaser.

The film marks his return to the big screen after more than a year. The superstar was last seen in ‘Tiger 3’. The teaser is further elevated by an electrifying background score composed by the acclaimed Santosh Narayanan, whose music perfectly complements the intensity and grandeur of the visuals.

The film is directed by A.R. Murugadoss, who is known for ‘Ghajini’, and also stars Rashmika Mandanna opposite Salman Khan. ‘Sikandar’ marks the reunion of Salman Khan and Sajid Nadiadwala after their 2014 blockbuster, ‘Kick’, which also marked the directorial debut for the latter.

Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, ‘Sikandar’ promises to be a cinematic spectacle that blends action, drama, and emotion.

‘Sikandar’ is being developed with a strong focus on engaging storytelling and dynamic performances, setting the stage for yet another memorable Salman Khan performance.

Meanwhile, Rashmika, also has ‘Chhaava’ in the pipeline opposite Vicky Kaushal. In ‘Chhaava’, the actress will be seen in the role of Yeshubai Bhosle, wife of Sambhaji Maharaj along with Akshaye Khanna, Ashutosh Rana and Divya Dutta in supporting roles.

Mumbai, Dec 28: National Award-winning actor Manoj Bajpayee has wrapped up the shooting for the 3rd season of the superhit streaming show ‘The Family Man’.

On Saturday, the actor took to the Stories section of his Instagram, and shared a BTS picture from the shoot.

‘The Family Man’ features Manoj Bajpayee as Srikant Tiwari, a middle-class man secretly working as an intelligence officer for the Threat Analysis and Surveillance Cell (TASC), a fictitious branch of the National Investigation Agency.

The series was announced in June 2018, with the filming of the first season beginning simultaneously in Mumbai, Delhi, Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and was wrapped up within May 2019. Filming for the second season began in November 2019, and was wrapped up in September 2020.

The series also stars Priyamani, Sharad Kelkar, Neeraj Madhav, Sharib Hashmi, Dalip Tahil, Sunny Hinduja and Shreya Dhanwanthary. It is produced and directed by Raj & D.K, who also co-wrote the story and screenplay with Suman Kumar, with dialogue penned by Sumit Arora and Kumar. Actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu was hired for the second season of the series as the main antagonist, making her foray into the digital medium with Suparn S. Verma directing a section of the season.

The third season of show preview at the end of season two seems to indicate a link between Covid-19 pandemic: China attacks the North-eastern states of India and they use Covid-19 as a distraction for the attack.

Manoj Bajpayee is the recipient of numerous accolades including four National Film Awards, and two Asia Pacific Screen Awards.

The actor has delivered several compelling performances in films like ‘Satya’, ‘Kaun’, ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’, ‘Veer-Zaara’, ‘Aligarh’, ‘Sonchiriya’ and ‘Gulmohar’ in which he shared the screen with veteran actress Sharmila Tagore.

The film won him his 4th National Award.