A few days after Arshad Warsi made a comment about Prabhas looking like a “joker” in Kalki 2898 AD, the film’s director Nag Ashwin responded. On Friday, a fan shared a clip from the film featuring Prabhas on X (formerly Twitter), praising the scene as better than all of Bollywood.
Reacting to the fan’s post, Nag Ashwin tweeted, urging everyone to move forward and not get caught in the north-south or Bollywood vs Tollywood divide. He acknowledged that Arshad Warsi could have chosen his words more carefully but took it lightly, stating, “It’s ok… sending Buji toys for his kids.” He also promised to work hard so that fans would one day say Prabhas delivered the best performance in Kalki 2898 AD.
Arshad had earlier expressed disappointment in an episode of Unfiltered by Samdish, saying that while Amitabh Bachchan was incredible in the movie, he was saddened by how Prabhas was portrayed, likening him to a “joker.” Arshad said he expected to see a “Mad Max” or “Mel Gibson” but was confused by the decision to present Prabhas the way they did.
Arshad’s comments sparked outrage, particularly from Prabhas’ fans. Vishnu Manchu, the president of the Movie Artistes Association (MAA), even penned a letter to CINETAA president Poonam Dhillon, condemning Arshad’s statement. Many other celebrities, such as Nani, Sudheer Babu, and director Ajay Bhupathi, also criticized Arshad for his remarks.
Directed by Nag Ashwin, Kalki 2898 AD has achieved a massive milestone, surpassing ₹1,000 crore in global box office collections. The film stars big names like Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan, Deepika Padukone, and Disha Patani, and was released in multiple languages, including Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi, and English. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, Kalki 2898 AD follows the journey of Bhairava, a bounty hunter, in a dark, dystopian future. After its successful theatrical run, the film began streaming on Netflix and Prime Video in various languages.
