Buchi Babu Sana’s Ram Charan and Janhvi Kapoor-starrer Peddi was released in theatres last Thursday, with paid premieres on Wednesday. While Allu Arjun’s family watched the film on opening day, he seems to have gotten around to it on Monday. Praising his cousin Ram’s performance in the film, he also sent love to Janhvi amid flak for her portrayal. (Also Read: Peddi actor Jagapathi Babu claims ‘bad reviews’ helped Ram Charan film achieve success: ‘Had to win twice’)
Allu Arjun reviews Ram Charan-Janhvi Kapoor’s Peddi
Arjun took to his X (formerly Twitter) account on Monday to post his review of Peddi. Praising Ram for his performance, he wrote, “Watched #Peddi last night. Mind-blowing performance by my dear @AlwaysRamCharan. A Gritty, raw performance, extraordinary body transformation, and graceful dance moves. He absolutely aced it in every aspect. Genuinely very proud of my brother. Truly deserves every bit of the applause.”
He also praised the rest of the film’s team and sent love to Janhvi. Arjun also wrote that Buchi elevated ‘everyone’ in the film, “Striking performance by @IamJagguBhai garu and all the other artists. Love to the leading lady, #JanhviKapoor. Compliments to all the technicians and producers. My warm regards to the captain of the ship, @BuchiBabuSana garu, for elevating everyone and putting Charan garu on a high pedestal. Congratulations to the entire team of #Peddi!”
Backlash for Janhvi Kapoor’s objectification in Peddi
In Peddi, Janhvi plays Achiyyamma, a woman who’s introduced as the daughter of a local politician. However, right from her introductory shot, the camera lingers on her body parts, hypersexualising her at every step. Peddi’s character even talks about touching her without her consent, making good on his promise and kissing her forcefully later on. However, all this is played off as romance in the film.
During the two press conferences the filmmakers have held since the film’s release, they haven’t addressed the controversy, nor have they mentioned Janhvi’s name when discussing the rest of the cast and crew. On Monday evening, Ram also spoke about Shiva Rajkumar and Jagapathi Babu, but did not take the leading lady’s name. Janhvi also hasn’t addressed the backlash, but ‘liked’ a post claiming that Peddi is the ‘most expensive disrespect’ to a leading lady.
Buchi apologised in a statement and stated that the objectionable scenes would be removed from the film. Despite mixed reviews since its release, Peddi has grossed over ₹300 crore worldwide, largely on the strength of its Telugu performance. While the film was also released in Hindi, Tamil and Kannada, it has not done as well in those languages.