Amaravati: Telugu actor Nandamuri Balakrishna has come under intense scrutiny following a video surfacing online, purportedly showing him pushing actress Anjali during the Gangs Of Godavari pre-release event. The incident has sparked outrage, with netizens condemning Balakrishna's behavior and expressing shock at the lack of intervention from those present.
In the viral video, Balakrishna is seen on stage addressing the audience alongside the cast of the film. Moments later, he appears to interact with Anjali, whose response he fails to hear. Subsequently, he allegedly pushes her, causing a momentary imbalance. While Anjali is observed laughing off the incident, her co-star Neha appears visibly stunned.
The video has attracted strong reactions from social media users, with many criticizing Balakrishna for purportedly disrespecting women and questioning the bystanders' silence.
Several celebs too commented on the video. Filmmaker Hansal Mehta asked, "Who is this scumbag?", while actor Siddharth wrote, "Appalling behaviour by Balakrishna and an understandable reaction by the junior artist who laughed it off, but the most horrifying part of this video is the crowd’s reaction to a blatant act of assault, cheering and hooting in approval.”
Nandamuri Balakrishna is the sixth son of legendary actor and former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh NT Rama Rao. He is also an elected member of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly from Hindupuram constituency.
As for Anjali, the actress marked her Tollywood debut in 2006 with the film Photo, and has so far worked in over 50 films, most of them in Tamil and Telugu.
Appalling behaviour by Balakrishna and an understandable reaction by the junior artist who laughed it off, but the most horrifying part of this video is the crowd’s reaction to a blatant act of assault, cheering and hooting in approval.
— Siddharth (@DearthOfSid) May 29, 2024
pic.twitter.com/kVO1UgYsP1
— Out of Context Telugu (@OutOfContextTel) May 29, 2024
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New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
