Producers Boney Kapoor and Naga Vamsi recently got into a heated exchange over the debate around Bollywood versus South films.

Now, following backlash from a number of Hindi filmmakers for “disrespecting” Kapoor, the Telugu producer has clarified his arguments on X. He wrote: “We respect Boney ji more than u guys do and there was no disrespect towards Boney ji in that conversation it was a healthy discussion, [we] had a nice laugh and hugged each other after the interview… So please don’t come to your conclusions with just what you saw (sic).”

During a roundtable discussion for Galatta Plus, Vamsi had noted that regional films such as the Baahubali franchise and RRR (2022) had reshaped Hindi cinema’s approach to mass entertainment. “It might sound really harsh,” he told Kapoor, adding, “We, South Indians, have changed the way [Bollywood] look at cinema. Because you guys were stuck in making films for Bandra and Juhu.”

Several Hindi filmmakers then slammed Vamsi for his tone. Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta wrote on X, “Who is this obnoxious guy sitting next to a senior producer like Boney Ji and deriding him with his fake vanity? 4/5 hits dene se yeh Bollywood ke baap nahin bane na banenge.”

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta echoed the sentiment: “Since this person Mr Naga Vamsi was being so arrogant and now that I know who he is : His latest hit as a producer Lucky Bhaskar (2024) has borrowed liberally from the Scam series.”