South Central Ep 7: Allu Arjun controversy, crackdown in Cubbon Park

In episode seven, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna are joined by author Sowmya Rajendran, lawyer and activist Vinay Srinivasa, and journalist Rajeshwari Kalyanam.

On the controversy surrounding Allu Arjun and the tragic stampede, Rajeshwari reflects on the shift in public sentiment: "Initially, there was a lot of sympathy for Allu Arjun, but that died down after the whole spectacle once he came out on bail.” Sowmya adds, “If he goes to a theatre, he knew very well what would happen. He knew that there would be a tsunami of people.”

Sowmya also highlights the obsession with first-week box office collections: “Producers bank on strong word-of-mouth during this period. The desperation to draw crowds is evident in the aggressive marketing and sky-high ticket prices.”

Pooja notes that Revanth Reddy has made a political choice to project himself as a tough man who takes on even the most popular faces.

As the conversation shifts to Bengaluru’s public spaces and how they are regulated, Vinay points to the overregulation of parks: “Parks are commons. There should be no entry barriers, but there’s too much state control.” Dhanya adds, “We have very few public spaces that people can access. And when they can access them, there are all kinds of bizarre ad hoc rules.”

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