Vijay Deverakonda dismissed the online debate between 'Ranabaali' and 'Jailer 2' as largely manufactured, driven by paid promotions. He emphasized staying true to his journey despite trolling, urging people to focus on self-improvement rather than negativity.
At the Ranabaali trailer launch in Hyderabad on Thursday, Vijay Deverakonda broke his silence on the brewing online debate between whether the audience should watch Ranabaali or megastar Rajinikanth’s Jailer 2. The actor claimed that it all comes down to the paid promotions driving it.
While Jailer 2—directed by Nelson—is scheduled to release on October 15, Ranabaali will hit cinemas a day later on October 16. The film also stars Rashmika Mandanna.
At the launch, Deverakonda spoke about facing online trolling, how he deals with it and why he doesn't let negative narratives affect his work or ambition.
The actor first cleared the air on the Ranabaali vs Jailer 2 clash, stating that, "First of all, we can’t even call it hate. Because 90 percent of it is manufactured. There’s a batch that drops Reels at a time that they’d rather watch Jailer 2 over Ranabaali, despite it being a Telugu film."
Deverakonda also claimed that one of the signs of a coordinated campaign is many people having the same opinion. "People can have opinions, but if you see the same opinion everywhere, it’s manufactured,” he said, adding that paid promoters may also eventually be replaced by artificial intelligence.
Asked how he deals with online hate, Deverakonda said he does not allow online narratives to bleed into his choices as an actor and feels it is those facilitating these narratives that must change, not him.
“Should I stop because someone thinks my dreams and hard work are unnecessary? Should I start acting because someone thinks my honesty comes off as arrogance? Should I step back because someone thinks my self-confidence comes across as pride? If they cannot digest my journey, must I sit at home?,” he questioned.
"I won’t change; they’re the ones who need to. I wish people concentrated on bettering themselves for their families. I enjoy success stories a lot...use social media to promote and better things. What is the point of using it to bring down someone?" he added.