Actor Nani has urged women to bring braided hairstyles back, saying they “look beautiful” with their hair braided. The actor, who sports a braided look as Jadal in his upcoming film The Paradise, made the remark at a press meet in Bengaluru on Friday, ahead of the film’s worldwide release on September 24. His comments, however, drew criticism from some social media users.

How the braid remark came up

The subject came up when a journalist spoke about how men sometimes imitate habits associated with women. Nani turned the observation around.

“For the first time, I think something a guy tried (Nani’s braided look), girls should try too. Women have stopped braiding their hair, and they look beautiful with their hair braided. I think you should all go back to braiding,” he said.

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Noting that the journalist herself was not wearing a braid, he added, “Our mothers would always braid girls’ hair during their childhood. Somewhere, we are getting inspired by western culture. Let’s go back to braiding women’s hair. I hope Jadal brings the braid trend back.”

Nani also recalled seeing his female classmates wearing braids during his school days.

“I used to see all my female classmates with two braids. Their hair used to look thick and healthy. Nowadays, everybody is complaining about hair fall because you’re not braiding your hair. Apply oil, braid your hair, and you’ll have healthy hair like Jadal,” he said.

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What do the netizens say?

Nani’s comments prompted criticism from some social media users, with several questioning his remarks about western influence and his advice on women’s hairstyles.

One user wrote, “How can you make such statements without having long hair?”

Another user questioned his comments about western culture, writing, “I don’t see him wearing a dhoti, wearing western clothes while criticising western ideology is so funny.”

About The Paradise

The Paradise, directed by Srikanth Odela, is Nani’s second collaboration with the filmmaker after Dasara. Set in 1980s Secunderabad, the film follows a marginalised community’s fight for recognition against feudal oppression.

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Nani plays Jadal Zamana, a role he has described as one of the most physically demanding roles of his career. The cast also includes Mohan Babu as the feudal antagonist Shikanja Maalik, Raghav Juyal as his son Vikram Maalik, Kayadu Lohar as Subbu. Sonali Kulkarni, Sampoornesh Babu are also part of the cast while Keerthy Suresh makes a special appearance.

The music is by Anirudh Ravichander, cinematography by CH Sai and editing by Naveen Nooli. The film is produced by Sudhakar Cherukuri under SLV Cinemas.

The film has received an A certificate and has a runtime of 2 hours and 49 minutes. It will release in theatres on September 24 across multiple languages and will arrive without a conventional trailer.

Nani has described the film as an action drama with the mother-son relationship at its centre and said it is the longest shoot of his career.