Here is why Queen’s Telugu version with Tamannaah has been put on hold

The Telugu remake of Kangana Ranaut’s Queen, which stars Tamannaah Bhatia in the lead, has been put on hold, not shelved. There are currently four versions of the film being shot. Not long ago, filmmaker Neelakanta, who was directing the Telugu and Malayalam versions, had opted out of the Telugu versionfollowing creative differences with Tamannaah.

He eventually went on to leave the project entirely. Following his exit, actor-filmmaker Ramesh Aravind was handed over the responsibility to direct the Telugu and Malayalam versions. Ever since Neelakanta’s exit, the shoot of the Telugu version of the project has been put on hold, but contrary to rumours, it has not been shelved. “Ramesh Aravind was originally signed to direct the Tamil and Kannada versions of the film. Since he began shooting the two versions simultaneously, he couldn’t take up the other two versions of the film when he was passed on the reins. Apparently, he will complete the Tamil and Kannada versions of the film and will only then commence work on Telugu version, which is currently put on hold,” a source told Hindustan Times.

The southern remakes of Queen have faced several setbacks since they were announced. After months of dilly-dallying, the four southern versions of the film went on the floors around the same time last year. While Tamannaah Bhatia and Kajal Aggarwal reprise Kangana’s role in the Telugu and Tamil versions respectively, Parul Yadav and Manjima Mohan play the lead in Kannada and Malayalam versions. Directed by Vikas Bahl, Queen featured Kangana Ranaut in an award-winning performance of Rani. She plays a young girl, who goes to Paris for a honeymoon by herself after being dumped by her fiancée, played by Rajkummar Rao. Talking to Hindustan Times last year, Kajal had said that she was very particular about how the original would be adapted to Tamil sensibilities. “The makers of the film and I are very clear that we want to adapt Queen to southern sensibilities, and do it our own way. While the script will essentially remain the same, the treatment will be personalized. I will also add my own touch to the role,” she said.