For much of the last decade, the phrase “pan-India” has become almost inseparable from the conversation around films travelling beyond their original language markets. What began largely as a way of describing the nationwide success of a few South Indian films has gradually become a marketing phrase, attached to projects even before audiences have had a chance to decide how widely they resonate.
Nani, however, has never appeared particularly interested in the label. His position has been fairly consistent: a film should not need to announce that it belongs to the entire country simply because it is being released in multiple languages. In a 2022 interview, he said that the audience, rather than the makers, should decide whether a film deserves to be considered pan-India.
Now, ahead of The Paradise, Nani has once again questioned the term, this time drawing a comparison with successful Hindi films. Speaking at a promotional event, the actor said he does not want his film to be called pan-Indian and asked why the term is more readily attached to South Indian films when they find audiences outside their home markets. “When we see a Jawan or a Pathaan doing well in Tamil and Telugu, it is not called pan-India. But if a Telugu film does well across the country, it is called a pan-Indian film,” Nani said. He added that he does not understand why the phrase is specifically introduced for South Indian films.
His objection, however, is not to films crossing linguistic boundaries. Nani has repeatedly spoken positively about audiences embracing cinema from different industries. That distinction has been central to his argument over the years. In 2022, while discussing the growing popularity of South Indian films in the Hindi-speaking markets, Nani said the industry should focus on making good films rather than turning the North-South divide into a talking point. He also argued that a film should earn its wider identity through audience response rather than simply being released in several languages.
His latest comments also come at an interesting point in his career. The Paradise, his reunion with director Srikanth Odela after Dasara, is releasing in Telugu along with other language versions on September 24. Yet Nani has described it as a complete Telugu film, with the Telugu audience remaining the team's primary focus. “We don’t want to call it a Pan-India film. It is a complete Telugu film, and our main focus is on Telugu,” Nani had said at an earlier press meet. He added that the team was releasing the film in other languages and hoped audiences there would enjoy it as well.
This is also not the only convention surrounding The Paradise that Nani has chosen to question. The film is releasing without a conventional theatrical trailer, with the actor explaining that the team chose to concentrate on completing the film rather than take director Srikanth Odela and composer Anirudh Ravichander away from the final stages of production.
For Nani, then, the issue appears less about whether a film can travel across India and more about how that journey is described. He has said he will continue trying to reach Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam and Kannada audiences, even while asking that his films not be boxed into the “pan-India” category.
