Peddi Hero Assaults Heroine But Buchi Babu Sana Insists On Calling It Romance In Ram Charan Janhvi Kapoor Film

Dear Tollywood, please stop objectifying your female characters for no reason. Stop assaulting them in the name of romance or vengeance. Stop behaving like you don’t understand consent in 2026. Especially when you give your male characters grace in all ways that matter.

I watched Buchi Babu Sana’s Ram Charan and Janhvi Kapoor-starrer Peddi’s premiere show and walked out feeling like I had watched two different films. One film understood dignity, questioned the loss of identity, and depicted the struggle of a man who wanted to be viewed simply as a human being. But all that applied only to its male lead. *Spoilers ahead*

Peddi (Ram) is a character who’s often referred to as aata coolie (a player for hire) and konda vada (a person from the hills) because his village has no identity of its own. On the other hand is the privileged daughter of a village elder, Achiyamma (Janhvi), whose only concern is to ensure her father stays at the top of the local totem pole.

The first time Peddi sees her is one of the most uncomfortable scenes to sit through. The director insists on zooming in on her body parts, even as the male lead describes her face’s beauty. He even declares ‘mutteyali’ (must touch her) because her father won’t agree to their marriage, nor will she ever fall for someone like him. Peddi keeps fantasising about her in the name of romance, even remarking in one scene, “Idi chupistonda, cheptonda? (Is she showing or telling?)”

Of course, the penultimate scene comes when Peddi makes good on his promise and kisses Achiyamma during a power cut. As she sits there sobbing, she is asked by a male aide to forget about it to protect her father’s career. All this is played off as the most romantic thing on earth, as AR Rahman cues the song Chikiri Chikiri in which Peddi sings, “Padta, venake padta (I’ll keep following you).”

The irony doesn’t even lie in how a film about dignity and identity gets away with objectifying and overtly sexualising its female lead in the name of commercialism, no. It lies in how we’re told everything is alright, as long as the hero does it and not the villains.

Rambujji (Divyendu) has a gripe with Achiyamma, so he decides to have his friends publicly disrobe her. Peddi, of course, saves the day at the last minute, but this violation of her is not given the same treatment as the previous kiss. This is shown as a grave injustice done to a woman; she sobs much like she did when she was kissed without consent. But that’s not the point. The point is a cool fight scene that follows after; that’s more important.

In a later scene, Achiyamma meets Peddi to thank him for saving her dignity. She touches his chiselled body and realises he’s the same man who kissed her without her consent. After she slaps him for the transgression, he explains to her, “Some people express love with songs or letters. I only know how to do it through touch.” Besides, he’s not even asking her to date him; you see, he wants marriage. She agrees, it’s totally okay.

Even as I watched Buchi Babu Sana perfectly grasp the concept of the inherent worth of humans before and after these scenes, I realised that Tollywood hasn’t moved an inch in treating female characters as human beings. She’s either treated with reverential purity or sexualised for voyeurism, even vilified if she has self-worth. It has almost been a decade since it was pointed out that Baahubali had raped Avantika, and yet nothing has changed. We’re still here, having the same conversations about consent and objectification.

If this is all we’re going to get in commercial cinema, maybe it’s time filmmakers, actors, and even the audience stop pretending that Telugu films have given the female lead something to chew on.

Signed sincerely, a film journalist and a tired woman.

Despite having a Master's degree in Journalism and over a decade of experience in print and digital media as a field reporter and sub-editor at organisations such as The Times of India and Reader's Digest, Neeshita Nyayapati remains a movie buff first and a Chief Content Producer second. She fell in love with movies in childhood and believes nothing matches the magic of watching a good film that moves you with a warm tub of popcorn in hand. Her love for writing about cinema follows that. Come Friday, you'll find her at her happy place, the movies, catching the latest rom-com or masala offering, for reviews or otherwise. As for the rest of the week, she's here reporting the juiciest news in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi or bringing out the best of celebs in interviews. While her niche is Telugu cinema, Neeshita likes to dabble in a little bit of everything to stay up to date. From film announcements to scandals and hard news angles, she has explored it all. A good book, a comforting cup of hot chocolate, puppy kisses and a stunning beach view are all she needs to unwind. Her passion for biking and travelling has taken her to various places across the country. She has found peace in everything from the frozen lakes of Gangtok to the coffee plantations of Coorg and the dense forests of Bandipur, to the monasteries of Darjeeling. But no matter where she goes, Neeshita loves coming across inspiring and moving stories.Read More