Has Tollywood become a fake factory? Absolutely. That’s the growing feeling among audiences, and among us in the media as well.
Just recently, Bunny Vasu openly lashed out at a competitor’s film team, expressing his frustration over paid trolling and negative campaigns. But this isn’t an isolated incident. Over the years, several notable producers and production houses have openly admitted to buying fake YouTube views for songs and trailers, and even manipulating ratings on BookMyShow. There have been repeated allegations from within the industry about fake marketing tools being used aggressively to push films onto audiences.
Even producers know that fake hype can’t make a bad film work. Yet many still rely on bots and paid campaigns to create the illusion of buzz. This is just their weakness. The most common tactic is hiring digital PR teams, and the minute the first show begins, these teams flood platforms like X with positive tweets and fake user reviews. These fake profiles are maintained to look real, all to make the film trend. But a single glance at the film’s hashtag usually makes it clear what’s real and what’s fake since most of these tweets are just copy-paste posts across hundreds of fake handles.
The sad part is that many producers and even some actors can’t understand the difference between smart marketing and fake marketing. They believe hype can be manufactured and sold. But audiences are not fools these days. They can see through the noise created by these fake bots online. No amount of fake marketing can save a film if the content isn’t strong.
This doesn’t mean marketing isn’t important. But it should focus on the film’s content and the passion behind the project, not on fake tweets. Unfortunately, many production houses are spending more effort creating fake hype to make it seem like a hit film has arrived.
At the end of the day, only content decides the fate of a film. And right now, Tollywood looks buried under layers of fake narratives. May God save theese producers and actors who are actually believing in these fake tactics!
