Tamannaah says South vs North debate has ‘only caused more havoc’

Actors Tamannaah Bhatia and Avinash Tiwary, on Friday, addressed the North vs South debate at Sahitya Aajtak 2024. They said that it was time the debate should be dropped. Jimmy Shergill, who was one of the speakers, spoke about South influence in Bollywood and vice-versa. The actors were present at the mega launch of their upcoming Netflix film, Sikandar Ka Muqaddar.
Tamannaah Bhatia addressed the North-South debate, and said, “It’s high time we stop creating differences in our own industry. Both industries should get together and make an actual pan-India film. Playing against each other – this has been happening for a long time and it has only caused more havoc. And the blame is always on actors that he/she has said something.”
She continued, “But, the fact remains truly that we are at a beautiful phase where people are looking upto us even internationally. They want to see Indian films. We should rather be talking about how to position ourselves in an international space. The South and North barrier should be dropped.”
“Movies are a collective art form. Every time you work on a film set, it is a new experience. There is no formula that suggests if something has worked in one industry, it will work in another industry. There is no right way to do it,” the actor said.

(L-R) Jimmy Shergill, Tamannaah Bhatia, Avinash Tiwary were guest speakers at Sahitya AajTak 2024. (Photo: India Today/K Asif)

Avinash Tiwary, too, said that it’s time the North vs South debate be dropped. “We should drop the regional divide and stop terming it ‘Bollywood’. I am waiting for the day when it’s called an Indian film industry, and not South or Hindi films. We watch Western cinema, Korean dramas and K-pop; the cultural influence needs to be discussed,” the Laila Majnu actor said.
He added, “We are not able to make a cultural impact on the world through cinema – the day we start addressing this, is the day evolution will begin.”
Jimmy Shergill spoke about the one quality Bollywood can imbibe from regional cinema. He shared, “There is so much South influence that is coming to Bollywood. There is a lot of Punjabi influence in Bollywood. Every industry goes hand-in-hand, it always works like that. You get to know more about it, thanks to social media”
The actor then spoke about the one quality that regional cinema can adapt from Bollywood. He said, “I haven’t worked in South so I can’t talk about it. I have only done Punjabi films. We can learn how to be more organised from Bollywood films which will save time and money for each project.”
Tamannaah Bhatia, Avinash Tiwary and Jimmy Shergill’s Sikandar Ka Muqaddar releases on November 29.