Allu Arjun-Atlee’s Raaka has created huge curiosity with its ambitious scale, and the recently released poster featuring the number 37 only added to the buzz. The secret behind the number has now been revealed on Atlee’s birthday. The team has achieved a Guinness World Record by capturing 37 people simultaneously in real time using Motion Capture technology.
But the reaction from a section of fans has been different. The poster created an expectation that the makers were preparing to reveal exclusive footage from the film. Many were hoping for a glimpse that would show the scale, characters or visual world of Raaka. Instead, they got a Guinness World Record announcement. Some fans feel such records no longer create the same excitement. They felt the makers pulled a KLPD on them.
There is another issue that could become more important as the release gets closer. The promotions of Raaka so far appear to have a strong Tamil flavor. Much of the promotional noise is coming through Tamil media and handles, which makes sense given Atlee’s background. But for a film starring one of Telugu cinema’s biggest stars, some Telugu fans feel the campaign is not creating the expected local connection.
At times, Raaka is beginning to feel more like an Atlee film than an Allu Arjun film. Allu Arjun’s star image is a BIG part of the film’s theatrical value. The Telugu audience needs to feel that this is their big Allu Arjun event too.
There is a similar discussion around Rajamouli’s Varanasi, where the promotional focus has a strong international and Hollywood flavor. For both films, the global scale is obviously important. But global promotion should not come at the cost of the home audience feeling disconnected from its own film.
Raaka and Varanasi both have plenty of time to correct this before release. The makers need to bring more Telugu-focused promotions, media interactions and content that directly connects the movies with their core audience. The films may be global in ambition, but the Telugu audience should never feel like an outsider looking in.
