Comedian-turned-heroes hit a roadblock?

With Sapthagiri's latest release 'Vajra Kavacha…..' failing to set box office on fire, the luck of comedian-turned-heroes seems to be waning in T-town.

Agreed that if an actor given the opportunity to play the hero, would grab it with both hands. Apart from gaining hero image, he can pocket big sums.

No prizes for guessing, when popular comedian Sunil turned hero with 'Maryadaramanna' and followed it up with another hit 'Poola Rangadu' but after that his career nosedived.

"The problem for comedian-turned-hero arises when they focus on building a hero image and not picking the right script. For instance, in Sunil's case, he spent more time on shedding weight and sporting six-pack abs even though it wasn't necessary.

Audiences really don't care how a hero really looks on screen unless you're a really big star," says distributor Vishnumurthy.

However, a star comedian, on condition of anonymity says, "I got bored of playing the hero's friend who helps in love liasons. After a point, these roles got so monotonous, I felt I can't do this anymore.

I can't quit cinema, so I decided to play the hero to extend my career," he reasons. Recently, Shakalaka Shankar's 'Sambho Sanakara' and 'Driver Ramudu' couldn't spin box office magic, while Srinivas Reddy had hits like 'Geetanjali' and 'Anando Brahma' but he strikes a balance between hero and comedy roles.

"It is better comedians keep doing their roles, otherwise they would lose their place to someone else. A hero's role once-in-a-while is okay, but trying to become a full-fledged hero would put their career's in jeopardy," says distributor Ramakrishna.

Saptagiri is the latest comedian to turn hero with 2016 action-comedy 'Saptagiri Express,' which did decent business. His other film 'Saptagiri LLB,' turned out to be a dud.

His recent film 'Vajra Kavacha….' wasn't a money-spinner either. "A handful of young comedians even before attaining star status are donning hero roles, tempted by good money and hero image, but that is denting their upcoming careers.

They should learn from star comedians-Ali and Brahmanandam-who earned more money and fame by playing comedians than heroes, that's a safe route.

Otherwise unsuccessful heroes have to return to comedy roles once again, which is unfortunate and embarassing too." concludes distributor Bharat Bushan.