Niharika Konidela’s recent Tamil film Madraskaran hit theatres on January 6, and the actress had been busy promoting the film over the past few weeks. In a recent interview, she reacted to the arrest of her cousin Allu Arjun, who was detained by the police in connection with the tragic stampede incident at the ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’ premiere last year. The actor was granted bail the day after his arrest and has now been permitted to fly abroad for shooting and other engagements.
When asked about her feelings regarding Arjun’s arrest following the stampede-related death of a woman, Niharika gave a heartfelt response. “No one likes anything negative happening to anyone, but what happened in the situation was much bigger. Someone dying is way bigger than anything. We all do things to live one more day. More than the entire situation, my heart was stuck there, that someone died. He (Arjun) is getting better now,” she said in an interview with Galatta Tamil.
Allu Arjun was arrested on December 13 following an incident on December 4, where a woman lost her life in a stampede at the premiere of his film. The Telangana Chief Minister, Revanth Reddy, and local authorities alleged that Arjun’s unapproved visit to the theatre led to an uncontrollable crowd gathering, which resulted in the tragedy. The woman’s young son was also critically injured and hospitalised. Although Arjun was later granted bail by the court, he continues to face scrutiny over the incident.
Niharika, who shares familial ties with Arjun and actor Ram Charan, highlighted her admiration for both. While she mentioned that her brother, Varun Tej Konidela, is the only one she discusses scripts with, she credited Arjun for inspiring her with his transformative looks in films and acknowledged Ram Charan’s guidance on interview etiquette.
Having debuted in 2016 with the Telugu film ‘Oka Manasu’ and marking her Tamil debut with ‘Oru Nalla Naal Paathu Solren’ in 2018, Niharika last appeared on the big screen in ‘Suryakantham'(2019). She is now gearing up for her role in ‘What The Fish’.
