The sound of silence emanates from Tollywood

When actor Balakrishna spoke at a recent audio launch function and “jokingly” said that his fans wouldn’t like it he didn’t “either kiss the girl or make her pregnant”, audiences everywhere spoke out against the misogyny-laden comments.

The actor since released a statement apologising for it, but one section of the public that was conspicuously silent about rebuking the comments: The film industry itself.

While it could be said that Tollywood was understanding of an actor simply making a simple joke and then apologising for it, or that they had nothing to say because they didn’t want to incur the wrath of a powerful movie star, the fact that no one really spoke against the actor could also simply be put down to the timeliness of the reaction, says director B.V. Nandini Reddy — “If somebody asks you about it you either say no comment or you give a quote. There’s no policy as such that says you can’t speak about others. It’s as simple and general as that. Even Mohan Babu, when certain people stepped out of line at a function, he himself reprimanded them then and there.”

A well-placed source from the industry, however, says that reacting to a public figure of Balakrishna’s stature, no matter where you’re placed in the industry, can have vicious reprimands — not from the person themselves, but from their fanatic-like followers.

“Balakrishna’s fans are very protective of the star and one comment against him can invite a lot of trouble. Fans can make life very difficult and that is why most of us are scared of Balakrishna and stars like him. Yes, Balakrishna himself has a lot of power in the industry but it is the fans that can cause a lot more damage and no one wants to deal with that,” the source says.

Agreeing with Nandini is veteran Tollywood director Thammareddy Bharadwaja who says that the industry doesn’t usually tolerate such remarks no matter who makes them.

“It’s not just Balakrishna, if it was another actor also we would probably be like that only. It was a private audio function and it was meant to be a joke — though it was not a funny one, I understand that. But with him being an MLA, it’s not right. Nobody will support that. If it’s a serious comment or problem on society, obviously we will react,” says Thammareddy.

But the wrath of fans is still something that most people in the industry are mindful of. “This is the problem that the industry faces when someone in power says or does something like this. When Balakrishna made that statement everyone was shocked but no one could react. I wanted to write about it myself but I didn't do so because of his fans,” adds the source.

Actors of the film Savitri (at whose audio launch the said statements were made) have been outspoken about the statements made by their chief guest. Actress Nanditha Raj told Deccan Chronicle in an interview, “It didn’t go down well with many. May be he said it in a flow, but what he said was wrong. It’s not about (inviting) trouble but about what’s right and wrong. And what he said was wrong.”

Her co-star Nara Rohit, speaking independently about being mindful of what actors say in public, said in an interview with us, “When it comes to me I am more cautious and consciousness while speaking. That’s the reason I spoke only a few words at the Savitri audio function. From my childhood I know how to behave and how to speak.”