The IIFA Utsavam returned after five years, bringing together celebrities from all over the country. While Shah Rukh Khan hosted the Hindi segment, Rana and Teja Sajja took charge of the Telugu part.
At the event, Shah Rukh Khan light-heartedly joked about many stars, creating a lively atmosphere. Rana and Teja also made some harmless jokes, though much less than Shah Rukh.
One particular moment that led to confusion involved a joke by Rana directed at Teja.
Rana seemed to praise Mahesh Babu, and Teja, taking it humorously, thought the compliment was directed at him.
Rana clarified that he was referring to Mahesh Babu. This conversation where Rana made a joke on teja while praising Mahesh Babu made the crowd laugh along at the friendly teasing.
Later, Rana brought up the topic of a Sankranthi film release, but Teja cut off the discussion respectfully, showing maturity and regard for Mahesh Babu.
Unfortunately, some senseless fans on platform X misunderstood this banter in the exact opposite way, thinking Rana and Teja had made fun of Mahesh Babu.
Without watching the full context and only basing on snippets, they started trolling the actors,interpreting the jokes as disrespectful. Moreso dragging Teja into it who tried to avoid the topic in the first place looks silly.
This reaction feels like misplaced frustration and doesn't set the right tone for fan culture.