The Mahesh Babu starrer Sarileru Neekevvaru seems to have brought two long-term friends-turned political rivals back together, though not without reservations.
Political differences resulted in some bad blood between the two stars, and at a recent function, they appeared to have hugged and made up. But did they?
The film brought Vijayashanthi back to the silver screen after a gap of 13 years, and Chiranjeevi was the chief guest at the pre-release function held at LB Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday.
Describing Vijayashanthi as a very good friend for many years’ standing, Chiru recalled how the two of them were even neighbours at one point, and visited each other often.
“We did nearly 20 films and she is like family to me,” he said and added that after their paths diverged politically, he had never commented about the criticisms levelled against him by the actress.
This is the first time since they became political rivals that the two have been on the same platform. They seemed to have made up their differences, and hugged each other.
“Thanks to Mahesh Babu, we are friends again,” said Chiru.
“But I want to say that politics makes enemies while cinema creates friends,” he added.
However, it appears that some things still rankle. “How could you comment about me?” Chiru asked Vijayashanthi.
The actress responded that politics is different from cinema. Does Chiru expect an apology from Vijayashanti for things that happened many years ago?
On her part, Vijayashanthi was very clear. “We did 20 films and you are my hero and I always respect you,” she said.
Call for Dadasaheb Phalke Award for superstar Krishna
Megastar Chiranjeevi has called for the conferment of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award on senior actor Krishna, father of Mahesh Babu.
Speaking at the pre-release function, he said “Krishna garu is the senior actor from the South and he is the one responsible for the shift of the film industry from Chennai to Hyderabad. He acted in nearly 350 films and as a producer he introduced many new technologies to Telugu cinema. He deserves the Dadasaheb Phalke Award.”
Chiranjeevi asked the Telugu States to put forward Krishna’s name for the prestigious award.
