MS Raju Says It's Not Easy To Contain Social Media Fires

Star Pawan Kalyan has voiced concern over the escalating fan wars on social media, stressing that the negativity is harming the box-office prospects of big-ticket films. Speaking at an event for his upcoming film, OG, the actor appealed to fans not to indulge in trolling or posting negative comments about rival stars’ movies.

“Fan wars have turned quite ugly, and the hatred is spilling over into films, cutting short their life span. Earlier, big films used to run for 100 or 175 days, but now their fate is decided within five or six days due to negativity on social media,” he lamented.

Supporting his view, veteran producer M S Raju said, “Fan wars on social media are becoming toxic. Trolls start even before the first show is screened in theatres. Star rivalries are taking a toll on cinema, but good films are still overcoming the menace and turning into blockbusters—Kalki 2898 AD is a fine example.”

He likened social media to a wildfire. “It’s difficult to douse once it spreads. It’s better to keep a distance from the raging fire than to try controlling it. Social media is handled by lakhs of young, sharp fans who follow their favourite stars passionately. They wait for an opportunity to troll teasers, trailers, and films of rival stars, and this has become unstoppable,” he pointed out.

Raju further clarified that the industry’s biggest stars—Prabhas, Mahesh Babu, Allu Arjun, Jr NTR, Ram Charan, Chiranjeevi, and Balakrishna—share friendly and jovial relations off-screen. “Unfortunately, their fans don’t share that bonhomie. They want their favourite stars’ films to mint box-office gold while wishing failure upon rivals. Negative memes and trolling have become rampant. Though this isn’t a new phenomenon, today’s fans are crossing the Lakshman Rekha, which should be avoided,” he cautioned.

Earlier, Megastar Chiranjeevi too expressed his unhappiness about social media wars and their direct impact on box-office collections. “Despite all the negative chatter on social media and YouTube, I believe word-of-mouth publicity is still the most powerful and genuine factor for Telugu cinema. It has helped many films set box-office records over decades. We must continue to trust the audience to spread positivity about a good film, because social media has its limitations,” concluded M S Raju.