Success Invites Backstabbing In Tollywood, Says S S Thaman

Telugu composer S S Thaman, one of the busiest and most sought-after music directors in Tollywood today, has made candid remarks about what he described as the growing toxicity within the film industry. This year alone, Thaman has had eight releases, including Game Changer, Daaku Maharaaj, They Call Him OG and the recently released Akhanda 2.

Speaking during a recent interview while promoting Akhanda 2, Thaman opened up about how success is often perceived within the industry. He said that the culture of appreciation has largely disappeared, with people no longer eager to acknowledge others’ work. According to him, backstabbing has become increasingly common.

Thaman explained that whenever he is approached for a project, another music director often steps in and offers to do the same film for a significantly lower remuneration. He termed this as a form of backstabbing and pointed out that other film industries display stronger internal unity, something he feels is lacking in Telugu cinema.

Drawing a comparison with other industries, Thaman said that composers like Anirudh are able to work comfortably in Telugu cinema, while it is much harder for him to get opportunities in Tamil cinema, as they tend to prioritise their own composers. He added that Telugu cinema has always been welcoming to talent from other languages, a gesture that is not always reciprocated elsewhere.

Clarifying that he was not complaining, Thaman said he enjoys working in a competitive environment. He mentioned composers such as GV Prakash and Anirudh from Tamil Nadu, Ravi Basrur and Ajanesh Loknath from Karnataka, and Gopi Sundar and Jakes Bejoy from Kerala, all of whom are actively working in Telugu cinema. He said he is happy to be part of such healthy competition.

However, Thaman also made a strong observation, stating that some composers from other languages, who are not even paid in lakhs in their home industries, are being paid in crores in Telugu cinema. He alleged that such composers are working purely for money and not out of love for Telugu cinema. According to him, they rely on PR agencies to secure Telugu film projects and share a portion of their remuneration with these agencies.