Return of Multi-Starrers

It seems that the age of co-operation has come upon Tollywood as multi-starrers are increasingly becoming the norm. After Venkatesh and Allu Arjun, even Balakrishna, Ram Charan and Manchu Manoj have joined the “multi-starrer” bandwagon.

With this, it’s paisa vasool for movie buffs. Gen X stars are giving the go-by to the norms of the veteran Big Four — Chiranjeevi, Balakrishna, Nagarjuna and Venkatesh, who never shared screen space. It was hotshot Allu Arjun who triggered the multi-starrer trend, working with Manchu Manoj and Anushka in Vedam. “I was inspired by colleagues to take up multi-starrer movies. I enjoyed that experience and I want to do more,” says Allu Arjun, who could soon be sharing screen space with friends Ram Charan Tej, Prabhas and Rana. “I broached this topic with some of my actor friends and they are game for it,” he says.

Prabhas and Gopichand worked together in the blockbuster Varsham and are waiting to team up again if they find “the right script”. While superstars Mahesh and Pawan Kalyan are good friends, Mahesh has limited himself to playing “narrator” for Pawan’s film Jalsa. But reigning star Ravi Teja, who shared screen space with Allari Naresh in Sambo Siva Sambo and with Sham in Kick, says he enjoys multi-starrers. “Once I am sure about my role and overall script, I don’t mind teaming up with any actor,” he says. Among seasoned stars, Balakrishna surprised everyone by giving his nod for a role in Manchu Manoj’s next film.

However, even during the golden era of Tollywood, stars like NTR, ANR, Krishna, Sobhan Babu and Krishnam Raju shared acting honours with arch-rivals to strike gold at the box office. Directors were careful to give them equal footage and significance.

Seasoned star Venkatesh, who acted with Kamal Haasan in Eenadu and shook a leg with Jr NTR in Chintakayala Ravi, says, “It’s not easy to find the right script to justify the presence of two big stars. Only a solid script could draw me into a multi-starrer.” Likewise, Naga Chaitanya, who is craving to share screen space with father Nagarjuna and grandpa ANR, emphasises the importance of the perfect script. “It’s a golden opportunity and I want to get it right,” he says.

Meanwhile, there is much speculation about a possible film starring arch-rivals Ram Charan Tej and Jr NTR. But Charan says, “He is good friend but doing a film together is just hypothetical at this point.” Ramanaidu, who minted money with multi-starrers like Mundadugu, says that multi-starrers are not new but a revival. “Yesteryear stars did more multi-starrers and also tasted success. Having more star-studded films is good sign. It can provide more entertainment for one ticket. Our stars should team up once a while, to revive our industry,” he says.