In a recent podcast, Bollywood actor Rahul Dev commented that Mahesh Babu doesn't know Hindi and that's why he hasn't acted in a straight Hindi film so far. He was replying to a question on Mahesh once remarking that "Bollywood can't afford" him.
The "Bollywood can't afford me" comment by the Varanasi actor has been interpreted in different ways. And Rahul Dev's comments, too, can be interpreted in more than one way. Rahul worked with Mahesh more than 20 years ago. At that time, probably, the superstar didn't know Hindi.
When Mahesh made that remark, he didn't mean disrespect to the Hindi film industry. He most probably intended to say that Bollywood doesn't know his style and his kind of acting. Without fully understanding an actor's demeanour, filmography and strengths (like dialogue delivery), an alien director can mishandle an actor. "War 2 didn't make the best use of Jr NTR because its director didn't have a grip on the actor's style and nuances," a movie buff commented.
