
Producer SS Karthikeya, son of director SS Rajamouli, has described the tense backstage atmosphere during the November 2025 title launch event of the film 'Varanasi' in Hyderabad. A technical glitch delayed the…
Producer SS Karthikeya, son of director SS Rajamouli, has described the tense backstage atmosphere during the November 2025 title launch event of the film 'Varanasi' in Hyderabad. A technical glitch delayed the presentation, which introduced lead actors Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Prithviraj Sukumaran.

Karthikeya told anchor Suma that he felt like crying and yelled like Nani from the film Jersey when the presentation worked on the third attempt. He said it was nobody's mistake, the setup could not be tested beforehand due to drones hovering all night. Suma recalled that Rajamouli's wife Rama was in tears, and Mahesh Babu's wife Namrata Shirodkar was praying.
The event eventually went ahead. 'Varanasi', directed by SS Rajamouli and co-written by him, V Vijayendra Prasad and SS Kanchi, is scheduled for release on April 7, 2027.
The coverage is broadly uniform across sources, with most outlets reporting Karthikeya's and Suma's accounts without added commentary. Times Now's version leads with the most dramatic language, framing the event around tears and yelling, while the other three provide more measured recounting. The story itself is a behind-the-scenes anecdote about a resolved technical problem at a film event, not a policy or controversy. The release date of April 7, 2027, remains the key concrete detail for readers tracking the film.
Coverage: 4 sources, 3 neutral, 1 sensationalist
Sources (4): timesnownews.com (sensationalist), timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report), hindustantimes.com (neutral report), pinkvilla.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 4 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.
Updated: this story now draws on 4 sources.