Self-Worship AA? Allu Arjun Offers Namaste To His Own Statue At Vizag Theatre Launch, Fans Create Memes
Allu Arjun has once again become a talking point on social media, this time after a rather amusing moment at the AAA Cinemas inauguration in Visakhapatnam on Sunday. The actor was photographed standing in front of a bronze statue of himself and offering a respectful namaste.
The statue features his iconic Pushpa Raj look, complete with sunglasses, beard and his trademark “Thaggede Le” pose. Naturally, social media users were quick to turn the picture into meme material. One Telugu comment that went viral read, “Em chesthunnav bhAAi?”, a question many others seemed to be asking as well.
Another Telugu-style reaction summed up the scene even better: “Ayyo, vaadi shilaki vaade danda vesukuntunnade!” The joke was simple: Allu Arjun himself was standing before his own statue and offering it a namaste. Other users joked, “Shilaki kuda AA ne namaskaram chesthunnadu,” turning the unusual moment into a full meme fest.
The picture also reminded fans of a famous sequence involving Rajinikanth in Sivaji: The Boss, where the Superstar has a larger-than-life interaction involving his own statue. But while Rajinikanth’s scene was written as a mass moment, Allu Arjun’s real-life gesture became an accidental comedy scene online.
Allu Arjun has often faced criticism on social media over what some users see as self-promotion. The photograph brought those comments back, with some users even calling the moment “self-worship” rather than self-promotion.
However, there is another side to the story. The statue is based on Pushpa Raj, one of Allu Arjun’s most popular characters. The Pushpa franchise helped take his popularity beyond the Telugu states and played a major role in establishing him as a pan-India star. So, greeting the character that became one of his biggest career symbols is not entirely surprising.
The statue moment was only one part of Allu Arjun’s busy Vizag visit. Huge crowds gathered along Beach Road, with fans surrounding his car and following it to catch a glimpse of him. In one viral video, the actor came through the sunroof and waved at the crowd as security personnel tried to manage the rush.
The Vizag Allu Arjun Fans Association had planned a rally but cancelled it after police permission was not granted. Despite that, large numbers of fans still gathered around the actor’s route.
At the AAA Cinemas launch, Allu Arjun also shared an update on Raaka. He said he took a break from the film’s Mumbai shoot to visit Vizag and meet his fans. He also recalled his Gangotri days, saying he once walked freely around the city but can no longer do so because of his popularity.
The new AAA Cinemas has eight screens and was launched with Allu Aravind and exhibitor Sunil Narang also present.