The reigning star Vijay Devarakonda who is touring various states to promote his upcoming film ‘Kushi’ and trying to reposition himself as a good lover boy, breaking away from his aggressive lover image by talking positively about marriage and relationships. “Arjun Reddy’ image still looms large over him. For instance, if he had played a ferocious lover boy in “Kushi’ then advance bookings would have been rocking. He is unnecessarily changing tracks,” says a top distributor.
In fact, many had criticized him for his no-holds-barred dialogues and also for sleazy acts in ‘Arjun Reddy’ and probably he was changing tracks to cater to a wider section of the audience and cut down criticism. “Society can’t digest a true rebel who is bold, honest and aggressive in pursuing things. So, he shouldn’t bother about criticism. His onscreen image is closely connected with real-life youngsters who also want to break away from strict societal norms but most of them are unable to do it due to family pressures. This connection, fetched Vijay more fans than any actor in Telugu and he shouldn’t give it up by doing routine and soft lover boy roles, which many are already doing,” he adds.
Of course, Vijay also won appreciation and box office success with ‘Geeta Govindam’ by essaying the role of an obedient son who keeps saying sorry to Rashmika for just one mistake. “He is a very talented actor and can slip into any kind of role. But to trigger interest and a lot of buzz around his movies, Vijay has to turn aggressive and showcase his rebellious streak since he is the only young actor to showcase ‘grey’ shade with aplomb. Time for him to revisit his fiery image to win back his winning streak," he concludes.
