SS Thaman, in a recent interview, opined that 'Jai Balayya' is the biggest chant in the Telugu States after 'Govinda Govinda'. The composer made the remarks in a promotional interview related to 'Veera Simha Reddy'.

"It's well-known that 'Jai Balayya' is rampant in the Telugu States. It's the one most-chanted slogan after 'Govinda Govinda'," the 'Akhanda' composer said.

The remarks have been deemed excessive and distasteful by many, considering that 'Govinda Govindam' is a religious prayer and not a slogan for a movie star. "Thaman has shown sycophancy. How can he go to the extent of divinising 'Jai Balayya', a slogan that started as entertainment?" a Twitter user asked.

Pawan Kalyan's fans started mocking Thaman for the deification of 'Jai Balayya'. In turn, Balayya's fans started reminding Jana Sainiks that Bandla Ganesh had resorted to a similar deification by coining the term 'Pawaneshwara', which is a combination of Pawan and Eshwara.

The Internet is surely divided over all this. Neutral Netizens are of the opinion that the Telugu film industry must shed the itch to obsessively pander to heroes.

సిగ్గు అనిపియ్యట్లేదా థమన్ pic.twitter.com/NhjZvNjYhV

— Political Missile (@TeluguChegu) January 14, 2023