4 minutes of readingHyderabadFebruary 3, 2026 04:00 pm IST
Some movies not only entertain, they stay with you. For a certain generation of Telugu cinema fans, Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi is one such film. Released in 2018 and directed by the then-relatively unknown Tharun Bhascker, the coming-of-age comedy quietly built a loyal following long after leaving theaters. Its warmth, its focus on the kind of messy, unscripted friendships that define youth, and its refusal to take itself too seriously made it, over time, something of a cult classic among Telugu film audiences.
So when a sequel was officially announced in June 2025, the reaction was immediate and enthusiastic. Fans dusted off their nostalgia and waited. But before the excitement could completely calm down, news came that making things complicated, one of the four original leads, Sai Sushanth Reddy, had quietly walked away from the project. The question, of course, was why.
Tharun Bhascker answered this question recently at a student-led event called Honest Townhall. What he shared was less of a controversy and more of a quietly human story about choices, respect, and the unpredictable paths people take. When the sequel was first announced, Tharun admitted that he wasn’t entirely sure if Sushanth would be involved. His name had been included in the initial announcement, but no firm commitment had been made. The call when it came was difficult. Sushanth approached him to explain that he wanted to leave acting and dedicate himself fully to his father’s business.
Then read – Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi movie review: A buddy comedy worth watching
Tharun did not take it well. At least not at first. During the event, he said, “When Sushi (Sushanth) called and said this, I just broke down. First, I got angry. The reason is that he carried on with his father’s business. He told me that he didn’t want one foot here and one foot there. And I respect that. But it came with a lot of anger and disappointment. I realized that every person has their own journey and it’s not my decision. I gave him the opportunity and he respectfully turned it down.”
It’s a revealing exchange, not because of the drama it contains, but because of how little drama there actually is. Sushanth was not left untouched by creative differences or ego. He leaves because life sometimes takes people in directions that have nothing to do with the screen. And Tharun, after the initial pain faded, understood.
But understanding someone’s decision and letting it derail your own work are two very different things. Tharun made it clear from the beginning that ENE repeat would go ahead, with or without one of its original pillars.
The man who steps into Sushanth’s shoes is Srikanth Maganti, who has already made a name for himself thanks to his work in films like HIT and Animal. It’s a bold change on paper, and the kind of casting change that fans of the original will inevitably examine.
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Tharun Bhascker, for his part, doesn’t seem to mind the comparison. What matters to him is not replicating what Sushanth brought to the screen, but preserving the character he played. “I had a story to tell and I’m not going to stop. For me, Sushi might change, but Karthik is the same. And, when I am watching the footage right now, I see Karthik. And that is the magic of cinema. If I tell you that you will only see Karthik, I think I will make it. I will not disappoint you,” he said.
It remains to be seen if fans will feel the same. Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi worked because of its ensemble, four protagonists who felt like they belonged in the same room, sharing each other with an ease that is harder to manufacture than most people realize. Replacing one of them is a gamble, no matter how talented the newcomer is. But if Tharun’s word means anything, and for a director who built a cult classic on the foundation of honesty and heart, Karthik’s character will survive the transition.