M9 News’ exclusive feature, “Top 10 Popular Stars of the Month,” is back. The feature was temporarily on hold as the elections took over everything, and the movie industry came to a standstill. Now, let’s take a look at the celebrities who made headlines for both the right and wrong reasons.
1. Prabhas’s Kalki 2898 AD
Also Read – Devara Part 1: No Cliffhanger Like Baahubali?
Prabhas’s Kalki 2898 AD performed exceptionally well in North America, and it was evident right from the minute bookings opened. The film also picked up well in Hindi, with everyone boasting about what a strong audience puller he is and his name resounding everywhere. This success, despite his role being very patchy in the film, shows his strength as a star.
2. Pawan Kalyan – Janasena
Also Read – 15 Cr For NTR: Easy, But Not Too Easy
The power star was written off in politics when he lost both seats he contested, but no one in their wildest dreams thought his party could win every single seat Janasena contested. He stole the show, going from a not-so-dedicated hero in films to a big bang success in the recent elections.
3. Nandamuri Balakrishna
Also Read – Sexual Exploitation In TFI: Rogue Caravan Culture
Nandamuri Balakrishna set a milestone example in Telugu politics for current-generation stars, proving how a movie hero can also be successful by winning not once but three times in a row from Hindupur. He is known as the most loyal party member of the Telugu Desam Party. Despite winning multiple times, he shows no tantrums whatsoever when it comes to party or politics, which makes him special.
4. Vijay Deverakonda
Nag Ashwin’s Kalki 2898 AD featured several cameos, a few of them outright silly, but Vijay Deverakonda’s cameo was an important one. However, it was brutally targeted on social media by a mob. Vijay countered it by changing his social media profile picture to the role of Arjuna that he played in the film.
5. Allu Arjun
Allu Arjun, who was once flying high with national fame and a national award, became a target for Mega fans for supporting a YSCRP contesting MLA while the entire Mega family stood by Pawan Kalyan. Adding to this, his most awaited Pushpa 2 failed to make it to the announced release date.
6. Nagarjuna Akkineni
Nagarjuna Akkineni was involved in an unexpected and unwanted controversy, which many felt was very rude on his part. His bouncers literally dragged a common airport staff member to the floor in his presence. Later, he tried to cover it up with another video that did not look genuine on social media.
7. Naga Shaurya
Naga Shaurya, who is reeling from a series of flops, put himself in a bad light by supporting Kannada actor Darshan, who was recently embroiled in a massive alleged murder controversy. He did this after the victim’s pictures went viral on social media, which shocked many and triggered hate towards him as well. (read here)
8. Shankar
Director Shankar was once again in the bad light among Telugu fans for giving utmost priority to Indian 2 and his reluctance to even mention his own film with Ram Charan, Game Changer, upset Mega fans, raising more doubts about the film.
9. Vijay Sethupathi
Vijay Sethupathi’s Maharaja not only impressed the Tamil audience but also Telugu fans. Most importantly, Vijay Sethupathi’s performance has become a talking point in Telugu, even though only a limited section of fans watched it. This film is highly awaited on OTT platforms due to sheer word of mouth.
10. Vishwak Sen
Vishwak Sen is back with another film, Gangs of Godavari, and made a big statement before its release. He tweeted, “saritralo migilipodhi anthe”… but the sad reality is the film made it to OTT in just 14 days. This once again shows how some actors grossly misjudge their films from the actual output.
