Digital tongues have turned the pre‑release buzz into a war‑zone of clicks and comments. Vijay Deverakonda, the star of the upcoming Telugu rebel saga Ranabaali, hit the trailer launch floor in Hyderabad with a jab at the storm brewing online. He claimed the chatter isn’t fan love, but a manufactured chorus pushing Jailer 2 over his film.
‘First of all, we can’t even call it hate. Because 90% of it is manufactured,’ Deverakonda told the crowd. He pointed to a batch of reels launched at once, all hyping Rajinikanth’s Jailer 2, while his own film got the drizzle. The actor accused a shadow crew of paying people to drop negative comments, a tactic he warned could be cut off once AI takes over. He added that paid voices would eventually disappear as artificial intelligence steps in.
The clash isn’t just fan‑bashing; it’s a clash of two titans from different industries—Bollywood’s epic Jailer 2 and the Telugu renaissance of Ranabaali. Ranabaali, starring Deverakonda as a 19th‑century rebel and Rashmika Mandanna as Jayamma, is built on a mythic narrative of colonial resistance. Meanwhile Jailer 2, directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, roasts the myth of the Tamil king Muthuvel Pandian, and is backed by Sun Pictures.
Fans on Twitter started a hashtag war, with #Ranabaali and #Jailer2 trending side by side. Some followers even launched a meme chain that mimics the manufactured narrative, calling it “social media dominoes.” Deverakonda’s own fan base responded by flooding his Instagram with supportive reels, countering the alleged negativity.
The two releases are a day apart—Jailer 2 opening Oct 15, Ranabaali on Oct 16—so the drama will only intensify on opening weekend. As the curtain rises, audiences will decide whether the manufactured hype holds or the films speak for themselves.