The grand pooja event of the upcoming multistarrer ‘Venky Anil 5’ was held in Hyderabad with much fanfare. The film was directed by Dr Anil Rabipudi And it stars Venkatesh, Kalyan Ram, Keerthy Suresh and Kritti Shetty in lead roles. The launch was attended by many stalwarts of the film industry, including legendary director Raghavendra Rao who shot the first official shot. While the launch of the film created excitement among his fans, the video shot during the event suddenly became the talk of the town on social media.
Raghavendra Rao’s first shot video goes viral
Soon after the event, a video of Raghavendra Rao directing the first shot started circulating online. The clip shows the veteran filmmaker closely guiding the actors and actresses during the scenes. However, some felt that his interaction with the heroines was unnecessary and that he did not need to physically touch them to explain the shot. The video went viral very quickly through X, Instagram and other social platforms. What was meant to be a celebratory launch moment soon became a matter of controversy.
Fans reacted strongly on social media
The clip went viral and netizens had strong feelings. However, many others criticized the visuals, while some supported the veteran director and termed his actions as part of filmmaking. Some users question the need for physical gestures, feeling that the scene can be interpreted verbally.Comments like “Why does he touch women like that? He could have done the same scene without touching them. Terrible Raghavendra Rao”, “Raghavendra Rao cow, what is this behavior?” , and “Ee Musalodiki Muttukukund Cheppadam Rada.. Prati Ammayini Ilane Chestadu” quickly spread across social media platforms. Another user wrote, “This is not the first time a visual like this has gone viral. After the backlash over Niharika’s video, one would hope you have learned how to behave.” Yet here we are having the same conversation again.” As the discussion on the matter continued to grow, the movie launch took a back seat as the discussion mostly focused on the director’s actions in the video.
Niharika’s video reappears amid fresh reactions
The recent controversy has also drawn attention to an earlier viral video between the veteran filmmaker and Niharika Konidela. Last year, during the launch of another movie, the pair were involved in a controversial interaction which later became the talk of the town on social media. While there was a heated debate then about whether the behavior was right, today, with another viral video involving Venky Anil, people are drawing parallels between the two incidents and wondering why such matters are being repeated.
