In a recent interview, outspoken producer S Naga Vamsi dismissed the view that Tollywood is a place where Nepotism is normal. "I don't know about Tamil and Malayalam industries, but there is no such thing here in Tollywood," the producer said. He reasoned that Nani, Vijay Deverakonda, Siddhu Jonnalagadda, Naveen Polishetty, Sharwanand, Nithiin and Adivi Sesh wouldn't have thrived in the industry had it been for Nepotism. He could have added Ravi Teja's name as well.
Naga Vamsi then proceeded to add, "Do you think Allu Arjun is a nepo kid? Look at the kind of effort Charan sir put in for Magadheera and Rangasthalam."
Netizens are unhappy with Naga Vamsi's dismissal of the Nepotism debate. Bunny himself has previously stated that he is a nepo kid. "A priest's son becomes a priest. Similarly, my family members have been serving the 'prekshaka devullu' since the time of Allu Ramalingiah. If this is called nepotism, so be it," he said in 2020.
Nepotism is not about talent, but about the ease with which you land opportunities because of your background. A son of a superstar actor or a big producer can dream of debuting under the direction of a star director like Puri Jagannadh or K Raghavendra Rao. This is not possible for others. A Nepo kid can deliver flop after flop and still land new opportunities under big banners. Most of Akhil Akkineni's movies are disasters but he is now scheduled to team up with UV Creations. And that's not because he works out rigorously in the gym.
