Allu Arjun on Success, Stardom and the 'Pushpa' Wildfire

On a cool January morning, Allu Arjun arrives at The Leela Hyderabad with an entourage of 18. His presence creates a flurry of activity. Teams are scurrying through hotel corridors to ensure that every need is anticipated and met. There is excitement and nervousness. The actor has recently delivered Pushpa 2: The Rule, the second highest-grossing Indian film of all time. More than 50 days after release, it’s still running in theatres. However, the singular thrill of a history-making blockbuster has been offset by the tragic death of a fan. The man at the centre of the storm sits down for the interview

Excerpts from the conversation:

THR: It’s a pleasure to have you on the cover of the first THR India magazine. In the last two months, you’ve seen such highs and lows, so I have to start by asking: What is your current state of mind?

Allu Arjun: For any actor to be on the top charts of the country, in terms of box-office, it’s a very fortunate place to be in. So, this is nothing less than magical.

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THR: With Pushpa 2, you created one of the biggest Hindi films in the country, and without speaking a word of Hindi! I’m hearing all these conversations now about how Telugu is the new national cinema. What is your response to that?

AA: It doesn’t matter you know. Anything can be national cinema — a Telugu film, a Hindi film. I just think any film that crosses borders across all states is a national film. For example, say Roja, it’s a Tamil film that crosses borders. So it can be a Tamil film or a Telugu film, or a Hindi film, like Hum Aapke Hain Koun…! or Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge — any of these films, they’ve cut across all borders, all of us have seen them, even the last man in the South has watched that film.

So, whether it’s from the South or from the North, it does not matter as long as the Indian audience is entertained, it’s one cinema. It’s come to that now; it’s not just regional, like we used to have earlier. But now it’s all one canvas, so it’s all one cinema today; that’s why it’s very easy to do remakes from South to North or North to South. And we cannot discriminate, because we have South films with a lot of Hindi actors, we have Hindi films with a lot of South actors, South technicians, South directors and Hindi technicians, Hindi actors, Hindi directors working in South films. So, it’s a mix today. I think it’s fab.

THR: My thesis about Pushpa is that the reason he’s such a powerful character is because it’s essentially a Marvel superhero, crossed with Vijay from Deewaar. So, he’s invincible. Even when his hands are tied, feet are tied, he can kill them all. But there’s a childhood trauma that never healed. Vijay had “Mera baap chor hai”, written on his arm. For Pushpa, it’s his status in society. All his actions are driven by that. And so, in a sense, he’s a tragic hero. Do you agree?

AA: I mean, my take will be obviously very different. I think he’s a man of the masses above all. My take was that it has to resonate with the heartland of India. He should be one of the people, just a common man of India. A labourer or anyone from that segment, which is like the largest demographic in this country. I thought it has to resonate with that sector of audience. He’s a common man, a very rooted Indian.

THR: He’s from the soil.

AA: That’s the right word. He’s a son of the soil, with his own childhood trauma, with his own pain. I think that each person’s take on Pushpa is very different.

THR: You won a National Award for the first film, but I think this performance is even better.

AA: Thank you. Please tell the jury! [Laughs.]

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THR: In the Gangamma Jathara sequence, you’re in a sari, wearing make-up, wearing jewellery, and you’re pulling off an action sequence, you’re pulling off a song. But for me, the defining moment is when he breaks down in his mother’s lap. Again, echo to Vijay in Deewaar, right? So, here’s a superstar playing a superhero, who can wear make-up and a sari and jewellery, who can cry like a baby — you’re serving the story, you’re not serving your stardom. But when you were creating these scenes, did you think, is it risky? What were the conversations that you and the director Sukumar had about these two sequences specifically?

AA: Well, one thing about the Jathara sequence is that, in short, when he initially told me, I was scared. Yeah, that was the first reaction. We had finished a very macho photoshoot, and he said, “It’s not working.” Then he said, “I want you to wear a sari, dress like a lady.” We started doing sketches. And then we could see it. And I started buying into the idea, because there’s always a fear in the beginning. First, there was fear, and then there was exploration. And then after a point, we knew, this is going to be the USP of the film as an actor. I knew it is a challenging thing for me as an actor. If I do this, I will walk away with a huge, how do I say, with a great name. Only one thing that Sukumar garu (sir) and I thought was that even if he’s dressed in a sari, he has to look very, very macho, the alpha-ness should not be lost.

THR: How do you do that? How do you keep that alpha-ness when you’re dressed like that?

AA: Alpha-ness is in the mind. You can’t take the alpha-ness away. That’s an inherent trait.

THR: And the crying scene? In the end when the brother accepts him, and he breaks down…. Just wonderful.

AA: Thank you. It’s purely Sukumar garu’s brilliance. I think we had finished around 60 per cent of the film when he said, “This is how I’m thinking the film will end.” And I thought it was brilliant. Because for any characterisation film, it normally ends on a high note for the character. It never ends on an emotional note. But this film does. I personally felt it was brilliant when he told me. And we did one or two takes. I did try to do it a little differently, then Sukumar garu came and told me, “I want it in this way.” And that’s what the shot is. He said, “I want you to break down instantly.” Earlier, I took a little time to break down. But he said, “No, don’t take time, break down instantly.” That was his idea. It’s the director’s thing; I have to give credit to him.

THR: A few years ago, you did this video with Instagram in which you took us through your home and then eventually to the set of Pushpa 2. At the back of your garden, we can see AA inscribed on the wall. The hubcaps of your car have AA written on them. Which could be interpreted as a little bit of megalomania? And yet, in the film, you’re willing to completely surrender to what the character is. I don’t think you’re worried about: How do I come off as a star? How do you do that?

AA: I am working with a commercial director; I am a commercial actor. No matter how much we experiment, we know the entire frame is inside a commercial film. I would say that the director knows the commercial beats. So no matter how natural it looks, it has its commercial beats. It’s got four fights, it’s got a couple of songs, it’s got so many heroic scenes. So it has all the commercial beats. The beauty about Pushpa for me is that it is a very natural film with a lot of commercial backing. So it is not a really a 100 per cent, how do you say... it’s not an offbeat film. It looks like an offbeat film.

THR: How do you not let your superstardom get in the way of the character?

AA: We’re not crossing the line anywhere, so much that the stardom dies.

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THR: So you’re mindful of it?

AA: We’re very mindful of it. Even if I’m wearing a sari, we are careful to not let the stardom not die away. So there’s a nice balance, like even if I’m wearing a sari, you’ll notice in the poster, there’s a gun in my hand. We chopped off the sari and made it so the arms can be seen. So there’s a lot of commercial beats in those.

THR: So you need to think it through to that detail.

AA: Yeah, of course, we went through like, I think three or four different look tests. Each one, we did it for one, two days, one, two days, one, two days. It didn’t work. Then one week break, and again, we started for two, three days. It didn’t work. So it happened three, four times. I think the third or fourth time, we cracked it. Third time, we got there, but something was missing. Then we set it. And fourth time, we got it. And that’s when we did the photo shoot.

THR: You’ve said Sukumar has had the most impact on you. He gave you your first hit, Arya. Do you co-create? Or, because his banner is called Sukumar Writings, is he strict that you follow what he’s written? Or do you go back and forth?

AA: Honestly, he prepares everything. And the base is his. And there is space for improvisation. He does not come with a very rigid construct. His filmmaking itself is not such. He comes with a scene, which has a beginning, a middle, and an end. He leaves space for the actor to fill the rest. After his final draft is over, he sits with me, or a day or two before shooting a scene and discusses it. “This is what I’m looking at.” “How do we add a performance layer into the scene?” The scene writing layer is all his, 100 per cent his. But we add one performance layer to it. That’s a collaboration. And that’s not just him and me. We collaborate and the other artistes also have to help. I cannot create without the other artistes’ help. It could be Rashmika [Mandanna], it could be the other characters. We do take a lot of help from them, because it’s a joint creation.

THR: And do you have suggestions for what the character might do in terms of like a plot, and is he willing to listen?

AA: Yes, whatever I feel about the character — I give him different reactions. And he directs me towards what he likes. He’s got very nice ideas about performance. So a lot of it is about collaboration, which comes from his side. It’s collaboration, honestly. We’re very comfortable with each other.

THR: And yet, not comfortable to the point that you’re complacent.

AA: I don’t think any of us are complacent. Because we knew this was a huge opportunity, we were never complacent about any shot ever. In this two-year journey, never were we complacent. Because we know this is a huge task. It’s an uphill climb. So we had the pressure, and we wanted to sell it at the highest price. I had the biggest opportunity of my lifetime: to mark myself as an actor at the Indian box office. And for him as well, it was his opportunity to be proven as a Pan-India director. So it was huge for us. We were under full — I wouldn’t say pressure, but we were very aware about the responsibility.

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THR: The stakes.

AA: Yeah, more than the stakes, the responsibility. So many people are expecting us to do well, so we wanted to give them a great experience.

THR: And that’s amazing. Because sometimes success makes you overconfident. That never happened to the two of you?

AA: We haven’t seen that much success.

THR: Only ₹1,830 crore! [Laughs]

AA: I mean, that’s now. Before that we hadn’t seen enough success to become complacent. And it was also challenging. I mean, it was a huge opportunity. We were doing something that was five times what we’d previously done. In normal terms — easily four to five times. So, we had to give our best.

THR: You know, when something succeeds like this, can it become limiting, for you as an actor. Do you ever worry about, “What happens now?” “Will people accept me in something that’s not Pushpa?” Do you have those thoughts at all?

AA: No, not at all. I mean, I’ve done 20 different films. And I’ve had more than 10 hits in those.

THR: You’ll continue to evolve.

AA: Yeah, yeah. I’m not scared.

THR: I don’t know if you’ve seen this, but there is a YouTube video of you doing a masterclass at Kishore Namit Kapoor’s acting institute, where you were also a student many years ago. At one point you say, “I’m an average actor. If there’s a point system, say between 1 and 10, I’m a 3.” What would you rate yourself as now?

AA: Now? 5.5.

THR: Only 5.5? Why?

AA: I mean, I don’t have a reason. It’s just a number — 5.5. Yeah, I’ll give myself 5.5. On a fun note, I think I jumped from 3 to 5.5. That’s like a 2.5 jump. It’s almost double.

THR: How much have you evolved as an actor? And what is your process of acting? How do you enter a role? What kind of rituals do you have?

AA: To prepare for the character, basically, I do a lot of homework.

THR: What’s your homework?

AA: Everything — I go into the details. With every department, I go into details. I don’t just stop where the professionals come and do their job. I collaborate with every professional at every vertical. Like if there’s a costume, I speak to the costume department about everything they do. There’s something that I add to that. I’m very accountable in every department. It’s not like, “Okay, you tell me the costume. You tell me the make-up. You tell me this.” And I’ll come and do my job. That’s only for maybe some photo shoots. But on a film, I’m very accountable. I very closely work with the costume department, the make-up, and I do a lot of R&D. And speak to the direction department or the directors in terms of collaboration — what is this character? What is the arc? What are the variations they can give? If at all it’s required. And what are the modulations? And I work with a voice coach maybe sometimes. Or a diction coach. For Pushpa, we needed a diction coach.

THR: It was a specific Chittoor accent.

AA: And that’s not my accent; I’m from Andhra. It’s not my accent at all. So we had to learn that. It took me two to three months to learn it. So I get into the details in every department; that is one of my strengths.

THR: What do you do the night before a big scene? Are you calm?

AA: I go through the scene before I sleep. And then when I wake up in the morning, while heading to the shoot, most of the time, I’ll always have one hour to 45 minutes of travel. And I open the scene now — I have 45 minutes. If you go through the scene the night before, it subconsciously sits in your head. And there’s a lot of processing that has already been done by the time you wake up. It happens when you sleep on it. Sleep is extremely important. We underestimate the process of sleep. But a great process happens. The same scene — if you give it to me that morning and if you give it to me the evening before, there’s a lot of difference. We discuss it…and come up with a lot of options.

So by the time I’m in the car, a lot of options have opened up in my mind. I discuss these with the director: Why am I only stopping here? I can add this here, I can add that there. And there’s a lot of improvisation that happens in the morning. We discuss. Whatever is required, we keep. Whatever is not required, we dump. I have no issues with saying no. I’m absolutely okay with taking nos. I can come up with 10 ideas and I’m absolutely okay with the director rejecting all 10 ideas. And that’s nice. As long as the director knows what he wants, that’s great. I’m here only to serve the director.

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THR: Even now? Even after the success?

AA: Always — it’s the director who will give you the success. As much as everybody might think otherwise, the truth is that there’s only one person who will deliver a hit. Everybody can do a great job, but there’s only one person who delivers a hit, and that’s the director. No matter how good the actor is, how good the music is, how good any technician is — all of this can be mediocre, but if a director does a great job, the film will be a hit. Ultimately, it is he who delivers a hit. I believe that all of us are inside his dream. We’re all projections in his dream. I have a very deep understanding of that.

THR: There’s that line in Pushpa that he says in the helicopter: “Jab upar pohonch jao, toh ego thanda rakhna chahiye.” (When you reach the top, you need to keep your ego in check.) So you’re managing to do that completely?

AA: I don’t know. I think with success comes a lot of humility. I’ve seen many people become humbler with success. It goes both ways. It depends upon the person.

THR: Do you find that there are moments when you feel like, “Apun hi Bhagwaan hai” (I feel like God)?

AA: No, not at all. Not even once. There’s not even one person who makes me feel that way. I don’t even think my manager listens to me properly. [Points to his team.] They’re all smiling.

THR: In that same masterclass, you said that, in your head, the cut of the scene is not when the director says cut. It’s when you hear the camera go off. You said, “I’m challenging the editor to find my relaxing moment.” Are you still that guy?

AA: Yeah, of course. Because many times there’s a special moment that comes to you in the flow. The director gets his scene, and says cut. After that you might figure out something that you can add. Sometimes it does. I think 20 to 25 per cent of the time it does. So I keep telling the actors: “Don’t relax immediately. I might do something at the end. So look out for that.” And we do get magic sometimes. We do get it. And that does work. I like that. I want to surprise him at the end.

THR: And do you find it easy to let go of characters when you’re done, or do they stay with you?

AA: No, the moment I think I’m done with the movie, that’s when I leave the character. The character does have an impact on me as long as I’m shooting. I think once the movie is done, it’s gone. I have a punctuation point in my mind. Probably three weeks after the release, or sometimes it’s on the release date, or after the final mixing is over. It depends. There’s a different punctuation point for every film. For Pushpa, for me, it was like three weeks. I was thinking after three weeks, after I finish the entire promotion, that’s when I’ll take my beard off. Once I take my beard off, then I’m off Pushpa. I take my hair off and I’m off Pushpa. So I was waiting for the three weeks to get over.

THR: And now, are you thinking of Pushpa or missing him? Because I was talking to Rana Daggubati about Baahubali, and he said, “Sometimes I miss Bhallaladeva.” Do you miss characters? Especially a character like Pushpa?

AA: No. Life moves on, new challenges come — new exciting ones. I need to make a mark again. Pushpa is just one face. It’s one beautiful face. It’s not everything. It’s one nice point. I’ve had good points like this before. You keep moving on. But this one was a very long lasting one. This one lasted for about four years. There’s always one that lasts for one year, one and a half year. This one because it was two films it lasted for four years.

THR: I was talking to a major star in Hindi cinema, and he told me that you’re a genuine pan-India star because your films opened to massive numbers here, but our films don’t open to those numbers there. Now that you have this…

AA: Here in the sense?

THR: Up north — your films are opening to, I don’t know, some ₹80 crore? Was it your Friday?

AA: Sunday was [₹80 crore].

THR: He said that you are a genuine pan-India star because you open everywhere. Given this, what do you have to think about when you now choose the next film? Do you now have to think about what will work here, what will work there?

AA: Of course, I do think about it. Even the filmmakers who come to me, it’s very obvious that they will come only with a film that will serve audiences all over the country.

Now that everybody is making films like that, if you notice — it could be RRR, or it could be Pushpa, or it could be KGF. You have to be very authentic in your language and make a great film. I think if you make a great film in your language first, that will convert to all the other languages. Ultimately, we want to make Pushpa a very good Telugu film first. Because all the actors are Telugu, we are performing in Telugu. Once you get the authenticity in Telugu, then it converts to the other languages also. If you are not authentic in your own language, it will not convert. That’s our belief: If you make it great in one region there is a magic that will travel across borders.

THR: You can’t begin by wanting to be a pan-India success.

AA: That is a by-product. At the end of the day again I have to make another Telugu film. A much better, bigger Telugu film to serve a larger audience.

THR: You are not letting the success become like a lakshmanrekha, that now you can only do this because the next one has to be even bigger.

AA: I mean the next one becoming bigger is not a limitation in my eyes; it’s an expansion. If you can expand more, it means you are thinking more out of the box. It means you are actually expanding [your film] and having bigger, better ideas. Thinking smaller is limiting yourself.

THR: The theory about you is that your stardom is a stealth operation. While nobody was noticing, your films were playing on the Goldmines and Goldmines Dishoom YouTube channels. They have 20 of your 21 films. The Hindi dub of Sarrainodu has 500 million views. Race Gurram’s Hindi dub has 170 million. Happy’s dub has 160 million. There are eight films that have over 1.23 billion. Did you know that this was happening?

AA: Yeah, this I knew. It started happening in the last 15 years or so.

THR: And what was your sense of it? Were you just like, “Okay it’s happening on the side.”

AA: Initially I was shocked. The first time it was a shock. Around 2010, when Hindi dubs were being bought for around ₹25 lakh to ₹30 lakh, someone bought it for ₹3.5 crore and jaws dropped. My jaw dropped. My dad and I got scared. Does he know what he wants?

THR: Did you think, “Should we tell him?”

AA: Yeah, it was Manish Shah of Goldmines who bought it. We came to know that he is a sensible man in the business — and then we found out that there is a huge — I think the heartland of India is still watching this kind of film. I call it the Indian format film. They are watching these Indian format films. There is a lot of demand for it. And I kept seeing that demand going up. Not just for my films, but for other South films. So we knew that there would be a point where this satellite viewership would touch theatrical someday. And I think it just touched at one point.

I think it started with [Baahubali: The Beginning]…all credit to Baahubali: It was the first theatrical film, a South film that I saw pay off theatrically. There was Robot and everything. But the big breakthrough was, I would say, Baahubali. And after that there was KGF, there was Pushpa, other films. Because, you know, this satellite viewing audience started coming to theatres as well. They started showing up in theatres as well. Then we had multiple revenue streams. It grew organically over 10 to 15 years.

THR: What do you like when you’re not working?

AA: I like to sit in a calm place and not do anything. Maybe trek somewhere. Or, you know, sit on a beach. Or just read a book. Just not do anything. Sometimes not even read a book. Not do anything. I love not doing anything. I don’t get to do it though. But I love to. Yeah. I think once if I’m off from India, abroad, some place, somewhere, I think I’m very calm.

THR: Otherwise, you’re not?

AA: Otherwise, my mind is always racing.

THR: What do you think about?

AA: Everything. I mean, it is always about the next film and the next challenge. It’s that that keeps the drive on.

THR: And you’re constantly, like, hungry?

AA: Very.

THR: But that’s so great. That’s wonderful.

AA: Thank you. I like my work. I enjoy it.

THR: And you like to be challenged?

AA: Of course. I like to take challenges. It’s not that — I’m not very experimental to be that challenging. But even trying to balance everything is also a challenge. You have to do the right amount of experimentation and the right amount of commerciality. It’s a nice balance between. So it has its beautiful challenges. I like those challenges.

THR: When you’re sitting, you’re not thinking of work at all? When you’re that calm sitting abroad?

AA: Yeah, absolutely. Anytime when I’m abroad, India, anywhere, there will be those points where I just take off. I just shut off from everything. I think that’s when I like myself. It’s very nice. The whole program is shut. When the program is zero, it’s great.

THR: And are you going to do that now?

AA: Yeah, I think most likely tonight I’ll take off. I’ve actually been waiting for this day. I would have taken off 4 to 5 days back. But since we had this commitment.

THR: I stood in the way of you sitting still! Tell me, there was this lovely note that you posted on Instagram that your son wrote to you on the day Pushpa 2 released about how much he admired your dedication and your hard work and your passion. And he said that no matter what happens, you’ll always be his hero. Do they understand how successful this is and all that has happened?

AA: They understand completely. Yeah, and it’s not like I hid anything from them either. I don’t think hiding the truth is grounding. I think creating a value system in them is grounding.So they should know the gravity of the situation because they are living in the truth. So [my son] knows that his dad is a big actor. And also end of the day, he’s a kid. And he wants his dad to be the best. Every kid wants that. I think we both have a very nice relationship as a father and son. We’re extremely close. I think he’s closer to me than his mom — in a way.

THR: Is she going to be okay with you saying that?

AA: I mean, my daughter and her mother are very close. I’m okay with that. [Laughs.]

THR: And your daughter has already made her film debut. She’s adorable! Is acting something that she thinks about? Or is she too young?

AA: I don’t think she talks about it. But I think, inherently, they like it. I can sense. I mean, you’re born into it. Everybody you know is in it. So you naturally tend to get drawn towards it. Even people from outside get drawn to this. How can people on the inside not get drawn to it? It’s a certain energy that everybody gets drawn to.

THR: Your wife Sneha is a very successful entrepreneur and a social media influencer. She’s got some 9 million followers on Instagram.

AA: At one point, she was the highest in the country.

THR: You, of course, have many millions more, but yours is more professional. You’re posting about Pushpa 2, she’s posting more about family and children. Do you ever talk about what is personal, what is public? Do you guys ever have those conversations?

AA: Rarely.

THR: So she’s free to post what she wants?

AA: Yeah, if there’s anything in particular, I would say, this season I don’t want this look to go out or anything like that. I think it’s an understood thing. We know what is personal, and what is professional. There’s a clear line, nothing to worry about.

THR: And do you ever fight about who gets to post a nice picture if there is one?

AA: Hardly.

THR: You’re not into it?

AA: I mean, I am into it, but she does it most of the time.

THR: What books do you like to read?

AA: Self-help. I read regularly, very regularly.

THR: Any recommendations for our readers?

AA: For all creative people, I think the book that I’m reading is an outstanding one by Rick Rubin. It’s called [The Creative Act: A Way of Being]. I love it. It’s articulated really well.

THR: And you’re an avid reader?

AA: I wouldn’t say I’m an avid reader, but I like reading. I prefer reading more than watching a movie.

THR: Really?!

AA: Of course, any day!

THR: You know who else is like this? Aamir Khan. He’s not a big watcher but he is a big reader.

AA: I think any actor who goes into a lot of detail will like a book better than a movie.

THR: Are you always critical when you watch movies?

AA: Not at all.

THR: You can get lost in the story?

AA: I am 100 per cent aam aadmi. When I’m watching a movie, I’m a very normal person.

THR: Really?

AA: Almost janta. When I’m watching a movie, I’m janta.

THR: What’s your taste?

AA: Everything — top to bottom, high to low. I have a wide spectrum. I can watch a niche film. I can watch a shallow film. I can watch a wide film. I can watch a small film. I can watch all genres. If it’s well-made, I’ll watch it. I’m not into horror or dark murder mysteries, but if they are really well-made, I’ll watch them.

THR: Preferred genre?

AA: I enjoy all genres. Sci-fi, romantic drama, drama, comedy — I like everything.

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THR: And is there a film you’ve seen in the last year — in 2024 — where you saw it and you said, “I would have liked to do that”?

AA: No. There’s no film that I would say I’d like to have done. But there are films that I really liked. Performances… I loved Animal. Phenomenal performance. That’s one movie I really liked. There are some nice Telugu films that have come out.

THR: Anything that stayed with you?

AA: Normally, every year I watch all the Oscar-winning films. Last year there were very good films that won Oscars.

THR: But you do that as homework?

AA: I like homework. It’s a mix. Every film will always add something to the bank. It’ll come out somewhere. I’ve recently started watching old films.

THR: Like what?

AA: Many Telugu old films. Some black and white English films. Some old Hindi films. Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Anand. Classics. I started watching those. I’ve watched it before, but many films like that. I want to watch all of Salim-Javed’s films.

THR: What’s next? Is there anything you can tell us about?

AA: Something very interesting for sure. Very big and very interesting. There’s a huge line-up. I want to have more releases, so I’m planning to do more than one film.

THR: One last question. I know you’re a fan of Inside the Actors Studio. So I’m going to steal a line from James Lipton. He used to end his interviews with: “If heaven exists, what do you want God to say to you when you get to the pearly gates?” So what do you want God to say to you?

AA: You lived.

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