Kannada filmmaker R. Chandru, who directed the 2023 action film Kabzaa, has sparked discussion with comments about Pawan Kalyan’s They Call Him OG. Kabzaa, featuring Upendra, Kichcha Sudeepa, and Shiva Rajkumar, received mixed reviews and underperformed at the box office, though a sequel was later announced.
In a recent YouTube interview, Chandru said many of OG’s visuals were inspired by Kabzaa. “Most of the frames in OG were inspired by Kabzaa. Everyone is praising those shots in OG, but I used similar shots in Kabzaa four years ago. At the time, no one noticed,” he said. He added that inspiration is part of filmmaking and should not be seen as plagiarism.
#TheyCallHimOG shots are inspired from #Kabzaa movie~ Director #RChandru pic.twitter.com/jLXzkBeB79— 𝙍𝙎𝙆 (@RSKTheMonsters) October 21, 2025
Kabzaa had itself faced comparisons to the KGF films and was criticized for lacking originality. Fans have also noted differences between the two films. OG, praised for its action and visuals, became Pawan Kalyan’s highest-grossing film, while Kabzaa struggled at the box office.
They Call Him OG will stream on Netflix from October 23 in Telugu and other indian languages. The cast includes Pawan Kalyan, Emraan Hashmi, Priyanka Arul Mohan, Neha Shetty, Arjun Das, Sriya Reddy, and Prakash Raj. The film is produced by DVV Danayya and Kalyan Dasari, with music by Thaman S.