Senior actor and megastar Chiranjeevi took the comments made by his colleague in Tollywood and Telugu Desam Party MLA Nandamuri Balakrishna on the meeting of film industry representatives with former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy three years ago.
He said he had watched Balakrishna’s remarks in the assembly live on TV and I was forced to respond because both Balarkrishna and BJP MLA Kamineni Srinivas had taken his name during the debate.
“When Jagan was in power in Andhra Pradesh, some film producers met me. They requested that I speak to the government about the increase in cinema ticket prices. Regarding this, I spoke over the phone with then Cinematography Minister Perni Nani. Nani told me that the Chief Minister wanted to meet me one-to-one,” the megastar said.
Later, the then government had given him a date saying the chief minister had invited me for lunch.
“As per the Chief Minister’s invitation, I went to his residence. During the lunch, I explained the difficulties faced by the film industry to him. I also told the CM that there was a perception that there was a gap between him and the industry, and requested that if given time, we could all come together to meet him,” he recalled.
He said a few days later, Perni Nani called him and said due to Covid, the chief minister had asked only five people to come and mee them.
“Though efforts were made to include Balakrishna, it could not be arranged at that time. A flight was organized, and along with R Narayana Murthy and a few others, we went to meet the Chief Minister,” he said.
Chiranjeevi said Jagan had treated the industry people with respect and honour.
“I explained to him the problems being faced by the film industry and requested government support. Everyone present there is a witness to this,” he said.
The megastar clarified that it was only because of his initiative that the government had agreed to the ticket price hike.
“That decision brought some relief to the industry. Films like Veera Simha Reddy and Waltair Veerayya benefited from the increased ticket prices, bringing profits to producers, distributors, and exhibitors,” he said.
He made it clear that whether he spoke to a chief minister or a common man, his approach was always natural and straightforward.
“I always interact in a manner that gives and receives mutual respect,” Chiranjeevi said in his statement.
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