Siddhu Jonnalagadda on LOVE, LEARNING, & LIFE BEYOND LABELS

With Telusu Kada currently running in theatres, Siddhu Jonnalagadda steps into new territory as a romantic lead, breaking away from his much-loved Tillu image. The romantic drama shows him as Varun – a man caught in the web of emotions, relationships, family ties, and the search for his own identity. Directed by debutant Neeraja Kona and featuring Raashii Khanna and Srinidhi Shetty as the leading ladies, the film marks a refreshing shift for Siddhu. In a candid chat with Priyanka Goud, he opens up about shedding stereotypes, navigating success and failure, and staying deeply rooted in his craft.

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On receiving mixed responses for his role in Telusu Kada

I'm glad that Telusu Kada is doing well. It's my first time playing a full-fledged romantic hero, and there's been a lot of talk about my role. Like you said, I did come across a few people calling my character a 'walking red flag.' But honestly, I don't really look at that whole 'red flag' part. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and that's absolutely fine. For us, it was never about labelling the character — we just wanted to portray him truthfully, with all his layers and flaws, and we went with that.

On working with a debutant female director

I never looked at it as working with a woman filmmaker or compared it to working with a male director. For me, she was simply my director — that's all that mattered. The thought of gender never even crossed my mind. Neeraja has always been very clear, confident, and straightforward about how she wanted things to be delivered. We share a great rapport, and I believe that chemistry translated beautifully on screen. I was also involved in the creative process as a writer — Neeraja genuinely valued my inputs and often took my suggestions, especially when it came to the humour or some of the radical thought processes the character had. We'd sit together, discuss, and figure things out as a team.

On women's power and memorable moments from the sets