Pawan Kalyan, Prabhas Tollywood's Pick For Mythological Characters

After playing Lord Rama in ‘Adhipurush’, reigning star Prabhas is all set to don the role of Lord Shiva in the much-hyped devotional film ‘Bhakta Kannappa’ featuring Vishnu Manchu. It is a story between an ardent devotee and Lord Shiva and it showcases what real devotion is all about. “Actually, it is a role reversal for Prabhas. His uncle and veteran actor Krishnam Raju donned the role of Kannappa in yesteryear classic ‘Bhakta Kannappa (made in 1976) in which character actor Balayya was seen as Lord Shiva. Now, Prabhas is playing Lord Shiva in the latest version of Bhakta Kannappa, wherein Vishnu Manchu plays his devotee,” says a source.

He claims that Prabhas has already been accepted by the Hindi audience as Lord Rama in his last devotional film ‘Adipurush’. “Audiences rarely accept commercial heroes in godly avatars. But with his good looks and personality, Prabhas pulled off the role of Lord Rama and it is kind of a boon for him since very few actors have achieved such respect and accolades,’ he adds.

Earlier, it was his colleague and Tollywood superstar Pawan Kalyan who swayed the audience off their feet with his spirited performance as Lord Krishna in the Telugu blockbuster ‘Gopala Gopala' in 2015. "Pawan Kalyan has already been accepted in larger-than-life roles and has attained a stature. So I cast him as Lord Krishna in my film ‘Gopala Gopala’ and it struck a chord with the masses.

It is not easy for every actor to step into the role of Almighty and it needs some credibility and a humongous image to pull off such divine roles. We gave a modern tweak to our film and gave a swanky bike for Pawan to ride. His magnetic smile, an established trait of Lord Krishna, also attracted the audience in big numbers. He played the God of Time in his recent film "Bro' and he may do more such roles," says director Dolly who made 'Gopala Gopala'.