What’s the use in boycotting ‘Dear Comrade’?

#BoycottDearComrade and #StopTeluguImposition were found trending on social media on Friday.  It has been more than 24 hours since ‘Dear Comrade’ released.  A section of the Kannadiga audience are upset that the Telugu version of the film has managed to get a bigger release in Karnataka than the Kannada version.  As such, they have floated the hashtags to resist the alleged neglect of Kananda and “forcible” imposition of Telugu.

However, commentators are of the view that such hashtag campaigns don’t change the reality.  “If there are more shows reserved for the Telugu version in Karnataka, it only goes to show that the audience’s demand is for the original version.  Distributors and exhibitors have a sense of which version would sell better.  I am not sure exactly how much the Kannada version was in demand before the release.  If the advance bookings are not encouraging, distributors can’t be expected to go in for a big release of the Kannada version.  It’s as simple as that,” a Facebook user who knows the dynamics of the trade says.

Telugu films have always been in much demand in parts of Karnataka.  It seems large sections of audiences, especially in cities like Bengaluru, want to watch Vijay Deverakonda speak in his mother tongue.