From Shankar to Ram Gopal Varma, fans question why these filmmakers were left off Allu Cinemas’ ‘legendary directors wall’ | Telugu News
3 min readHyderabadMar 13, 2026 02:28 PM IST
The inauguration of Allu Cinemas in Hyderabad was meant to be a straightforward milestone for the Allu family’s expansion of exhibition business. What followed, however, was an unexpected debate about who deserves to be called a legend and who gets to decide that.
The controversy began when videos from inside the newly opened multiplex on Thursday showed a “legendary directors wall” featuring photographs of filmmakers including SS Rajamouli, Mani Ratnam, Rajkumar Hirani, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Sukumar, Trivikram Srinivas, Prashanth Neel, Rishab Shetty, Vetrimaaran and Atlee. For many cinema lovers, the list raised more questions than it answered.
The most pointed criticism centred on the absence of director Shankar, whose work across films like Enthiran, Indian, Mudhalvan and Sivaji shaped the scale and ambition of South Indian commercial cinema for decades. His absence raised eyebrows among those who felt the wall was meant to celebrate commercial directors of this era.
Ram Gopal Varma, a filmmaker who fundamentally shifted how Telugu cinema told stories in the 1990s, was also missing from the wall, as were Puri Jagannadh and Srinu Vaitla.
The absence of Puri Jagannadh, in particular, drew pointed discussion given his contribution to several modern-day classics. The absence of Boyapati Srinu was also noted, with fans pointing out that both he and Puri Jagannadh played a direct role in shaping Allu Arjun’s mass image.
The inclusion of Atlee became its own separate debate. Atlee has often faced accusations of drawing inspiration from earlier films, particularly those of director Shankar, and a section of fans questioned why he was featured on the wall in Shankar’s absence. The situation was further complicated by the fact that Allu Arjun is currently collaborating with Atlee on his next film, leading some to allege that personal and professional connections may have influenced the selection.
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It is worth noting that the wall in question is not the only display of its kind in the multiplex. There is a separate wall featuring photographs of veteran directors K Vishwanath, Dasari Narayana Rao, K Balachander and Bapu Raghavendra Rao. That context has done little to quiet the debate, however, as the question of which filmmakers made it onto the “legendary” wall remains the focus of most of the criticism.
Allu Cinemas was inaugurated on Thursday by Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and is set to begin public screenings on March 19 during the Ugadi festival, with Ustaad Bhagat Singh and Dhurandhar: The Revenge among the first films to be screened. The theatre houses a screen measuring nearly 75 feet wide, making it the largest Dolby Cinema screen in India, the biggest in Asia, and the second largest in the world.
