“I don’t want to take names but a few actresses are unable to pull in crowds,” Deccan Chronicle has quoted prominent exhibitor-distributor Suniel Narang as saying. He made the remarks in the context of the failure of recent female-centric movies like Sai Pallavi's 'Virata Parvam' and Kajal Aggarwal's 'Satyabhama' at the box-office. Although 'Geethanjali Malli Vacchindi' has also been mentioned in this context, to be fair to actress Anjali, it was a male-centric horror-comedy wherein the male comedians had more screentime.
Had Anushka Shetty's 'Nishabdham' been released in theatres and not on OTT in 2020, it would have turned out to be one of the biggest disasters among female-centric movies.
The audience, these days, are prioritizing factors like genre, director, or even streaming availability. In this context, there is little wonder that directors/writers and producers who think they can attract audiences by casting a star actress in the role of, say, a cop would suffice.
The viewpoint often heard from both audiences and distributors is that the Telugu filmmakers have failed to up the ante. They are still stuck with formulaic stories.
