A shocking incident recently highlighted the struggles of small filmmakers when young director Mohan Srivastava slapped himself with a slipper in public to express his disappointment over the poor turnout for his latest film Tribanadhari Barbarick. Despite his emotional appeal urging Telugu audiences to support his work, the film failed to gain momentum at the box office.

Noted producer Raj Kandukuri, known for backing new talent, reacted with concern. “It was heartbreaking to see a young filmmaker take such a drastic step. It is extremely painful and unfortunate,” he said.

Kandukuri observed that even appeals from actors like Vishwak Sen and Nara Rohit, who requested audiences to support small films, had little effect. Several recent releases such as Arjun Chakravarthy, Kanya Kumari, The 100, Bun Butter Jam, Oh Bama Ayyo Rama, and Meghalu Chepina Prema Katha failed to connect with viewers. “Never before have young actors and directors felt so hopeless. In the past few years, over 30 films had no takers,” he added.

Having produced acclaimed content-driven films like Pellichoopulu and Mental Madhilo, Kandukuri still believes that new-age filmmakers need encouragement. However, he emphasized that quality alone is not enough. “A song must go viral, or a teaser should create buzz. Without hype, audiences don’t come to theatres. Producers need to rethink marketing strategies—making a good film is only half the job. For small films, at least ₹50–60 lakh should be spent on promotion, while big films require around ₹3 crore,” he explained.

Kandukuri also drew comparisons with other industries, noting that Malayalam and Tamil audiences often embrace smaller or non-star films, whereas Telugu audiences remain selective. “We saw thematic films like Committee Kurrollu and Aay work, but we need more such successes to break the monotony of action-heavy commercial cinema. Even some star-driven projects collapsed within three days, proving again that content is king and stardom is secondary,” he concluded.