Allu Arjun: Tollywood star arrested after woman dies in crush at Pushpa 2 film premiere

Indian Southern film actor Allu Arjun, center, greets his fans in Hyderabad, India, Friday, Dec. 13, 2024, as he leaves a hospital where he was taken for medical checkup by policemen before arresting him after his appearance at a film screening allegedly led to a crush of fans in which a woman died. (AP Photo)

A popular Indian actor has been arrested after a woman died in a crush at the premiere of his latest movie Pushpa 2: The Rule.

Allu Arjun, a top star in the Telugu film industry, also known as “Tollywood”, was making an appearance at the event in Hyderabad on 4 December when the incident happened.

As fans clamoured to meet the actor, a 39-year-old woman died and her nine-year-old son was critically injured.

Police earlier this week arrested the owner of the cinema where the incident took place.

On Friday, they arrested Arjun, 41, at his home.

He was granted bail by a local court a few hours after his arrest and he was expected to be released from prison shortly, his lawyers said.

Arjun was named in the initial police complaint, which alleged that his security had tried to clear the crowd near him, causing the death of the woman who had become breathless, according to a copy of the document seen by the news agency Reuters.

Arjun’s legal team has denied any wrongdoing.

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Writing on the X social media platform, the actor said he was “deeply heartbroken” by the incident.

“My heartfelt condolences go out to the grieving family during this unimaginably difficult time,” he wrote.

“While respecting their need for space to grieve, I stand committed to extend every possible assistance to help them navigate through this challenging journey.”