Releasing today: Puli vs Pink Panthers

Pre-release glitches continue to haunt the much-awaited Pawan Kalyan-starrer flick, Komaram Puli, with pro-Telangana students threatening to disrupt the screening of the movie which releases on Friday, opposing the actor’s change of stand on a separate Telangana. Pawan Kalyan headed the Yuva Rajyam, the youth wing of Praja Rajyam Party (PRP), which was floated by his actor-turned-politician brother, Chiranjeevi.

The film’s release date had been stalled with the Madras High Court directing its producers not to release the film after a cheque bounce case. Even as the issue was close to being sorted out, the Osmania University Students’ Joint Action Committee (OUJAC) today gave a call of social boycott against the movie. They have threatened to stall the screening of the movie in the region. The pro-Telangana supporters are objecting to PRP’s change of stand to a unified Andhra, after fighting the elections on the plank of Samajikha Telangana (social Telangana).

“As chief of the Yuva Rajyam, Pawan Kalyan announced his party was in favour of a separate Telangana at the Arts College on September 17 last year. After the December 9 developments, the party has changed its stand and is favouring a unified Andhra,” OUJAC leader P Kailash told reporters. Chiranjeevi and Pawan Kalyan have betrayed the cause of Telangana and we won’t allow Komaram Puli to be screened in the region, he said.

The party had garnered 18 per cent vote share in the region in the elections by fighting on the Samajikha Telangana slogan and have now betrayed the cause, he added. The OUJAC also released posters asking the people of Telangana to boycott the movie.

Earlier, pro-Telangana activists and parties had also given a boycott call to Jr NTR-starrer Adhurs and the recently released Vandemataram Srinivas directed Badmaash in the region, opposing the actors or the director’s anti-Telangana stand.

Meanwhile, the OUJAC said Telangana Political JAC convenor Prof Kodandaram and JAC leaders of other fields like government employees and doctors would be the chief guests for the proposed meeting to be organised at the Arts College on September 17, to be celebrated as Telangana Liberation Day.

 m expresshyd@expressbuzz.com