Bholaa Shankar: Chiranjeevi gets a grand welcome as he returns to sets post Waltair Veerayya’s success

With Chiranjeevi not managing to score a hit post Khaidi No 150 in his second innings, many raised doubts about his ability to draw a different generation of crowds to theatres. However, he silenced all his odds in style with Waltair Veerayya, the Bobby Kolli directorial, which gave audiences a taste of his vintage avatar with liberal doses of action, comedy, romance and catchy numbers.

Buoyed by the success of Waltair Veerayya, Chiranjeevi has resumed work on his next film, Bholaa Shankar, the Telugu remake of Vedalam, which is expected to release in summer 2023. He returned to the sets of Bholaa Shankar on Wednesday and needless to say, received a grand welcome from the team that honoured Chiranjeevi and even cut a cake with him upon his arrival.

Bholaa Shankar director Meher Ramesh and actress Keerthy Suresh accompanied Chiranjeevi while he arrived on the set along with Waltair Veerayya’s producer Naveen Yerneni and a series of crackers were burst in the pathway too. Producer Anil Sunkara, Chiranjeevi’s daughter and costume designer Sushmita Konidela, character artiste Sammeta Gandhi were also present on the set.

Tamannaah Bhatia is cast as Chiranjeevi’s romantic interest in the project; her second with the veteran after Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy. Earlier today, Waltair Veerayya moved past the $2 million mark in the US - the third time a Chiranjeevi starrer has managed to achieve it in the star’s last five films. Shruti Haasan, Catherine Tresa, Ravi Teja and Bobby Simha too played key roles in it.

Among Chiranjeevi’s six films in his second innings, it’s interesting to note that Bholaa Shankar is his third remake after the adaptations of Lucifer (Godfather) and Kaththi (Khaidi No 150). Considerable changes have been made to the Vedalam remake, whose script has undergone makeover under veteran writer Satyanand Pydipalli. Vedalam is surprisingly not available to watch on any OTT platform.