The pandemic has done a lot to change the way people look at cinema, stars and remakes in general and it’s sad that Telugu cinema is refusing to move on with the times. Pink and its Tamil remake Nerkonda Paarvai were successes because they let the women take centre stage in the context of the story without letting stars like Amitabh Bachchan or Ajith overshadow its intent. The film takes on patriarchy, confronts prejudices and values consent regardless of gender and as far as the promos of the Telugu remake of Pink, Vakeel Saab, goes, thinks are working the other way round.
From the poster launch to Sid Sriram’s song release to the motion poster release commemorating Pawan Kalyan’s birthday today, it’s a travesty that none of Vakeel Saab’s promotional activities has featured its other lead actors Ananya Nagalla, Anjali or Nivetha Thomas at all, but for namesake tags on social media. While one also felt that the title barely does justice to the content and merely celebrates the star presence of Pawan Kalyan, it’s unfortunate that a film that mirrors gender prejudices among society hasn’t featured female actors in even a single poster.
Pink is a particular film that ran very well across the Telugu states given the popularity of Taapsee and Amitabh Bachchan here and has been widely watched across streaming platforms too. Nerkonda Paarvai has also reached OTT platforms and has registered impressive numbers. Although it’s commendable that Pawan Kalyan has given his consent for a unique story, until and unless Vakeel Saab unearths great performances or provides a different take on the issue (which seems highly unlikely), one wonders if such a delayed remake is even worth it all.
