Ahead of Hari Hara Veera Mallu’s release, actor-politician Pawan Kalyan has been making active efforts to promote his film across the two Telugu states. After attending two events in Hyderabad on Monday, Pawan Kalyan interacted with media in Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday. On the occasion, the actor spoke at length about his 2003 directorial Johnny, and how the film’s failure helped him in the long run.

Recalling the underwhelming box office performance of Johnny, where he also played the lead role, Pawan Kalyan noted, “When Johnny didn’t work, many financiers and distributors came to my doorstep within 5-10 days, saying, ‘we lost our money, what do we do now?’" Pawan Kalyan recalled how he then decided to return his remuneration, adding, “I was puzzled by the pushback from everyone around. I thought the best I could do under the situation is return the free, which I did. I even took a substantial loan after that.”

At the same time, the Hari Hara Veera Mallu actor stated that his experience dealing with Johnny’s failure helped me later. He said, “That experience made me stronger. The film’s failure helped me in politics too, years later. When I lost in 2019 elections, I was reminded of Johnny and how I survived that phase. Failure is part and parcel of growth, I learnt then.”

Pawan Kalyan also mentioned that it was his experience dealing with failure that further compelled him to go the extra mile in supporting HHVM producer AM Rathnam for the film’s release.  “To see Rathnam gaaru struggle for the film’s release was painful to me. Thats why I made stronger attempts from close quarters to bring to to audience.”

Directed by Jyothi Krisna and Krish Jagarlamudi, Hari Hara Veera Mallu hits theatres worldwide on July 24. The makers have also planned special paid premieres on Wednesday evening.