Tharun Bhascker reveals why Sai Sushanth rejected ENE Repeat: ‘I was angry, just broke’

IN 2018, when Tharun Bhascker’s Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi (ENE), starring Vishwak Sen, Sai Sushanth Reddy, Abhinav Gomatam and Venkatesh Kakumanu, come to screens, the pal comedy found its audience and has suit a cultus strike through the years. After an announcement in June 2025 that the film’s sequel, ENE Repeat, was officially in the works, news broke last month that Sushanth stepped away from the film. During the student-led Honest Townhall, Tharun revealed the reason.Tharun Bhascker reveals why Sushanth rejected ENE RepeatTharun admitted that in 2025, when they announced ENE Repeat, they weren’t sure whether Sushanth was on board with the project, despite including his name. “When Sushi called, and he said this, I just broke. First, I got angry. The reason is that he moved on towards his father’s business. He told me he doesn’t want one foot here and one there. And I respect that. But it came with a lot of anger and disappointment. I realised that each person has their own journey and it’s not my call to take. I gave him the opportunity, and he respectfully rejected it,” explained the director. But Tharun says that despite that, he decided to go ahead with the project with Srikanth Maganti of HIT and Animal-fame taking over the role. “I had a story to tell, and I am not going to stop. For me, Sushi might change, but Karthik is the same. And, when I’m seeing the footage right now, I see Karthik. And that’s the magic of cinema. If I’m telling you that you’ll only see Karthik, I think I’ll succeed in doing that. I won’t let you guys down,” he said. Reacting to Tharun’s revelation, one Instagram user commented, “Karthik is the soul of ENE.” Another reacted to how Sushanth’s character leaves behind his passion for business in the film, writing, “Movie manifested real life.”About the Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi sequelENE is written and directed by Tharun and features characters based on him and his friends. Vishwak plays Vivek, a moody filmmaker inspired by Tharun, while Sushanth plays a nightclub manager looking to scale up, inspired by his friend Nagesh Banell. Abhinav plays a dubbing artiste named Kaushik, inspired by a friend of the same name, while Venkatesh plays a video editor named Uppi, inspired by Ravi Teja Girijala. The first part sees the friends go on a bachelor trip to Goa to celebrate Karthik’s engagement to his boss’s daughter, only to rediscover their passion for filmmaking and their life priorities. Announcing the sequel, which sees the friends reunite, Tharun had written, “Bro this is our vibe. To: Bro it’s happening again. The Most iconic Kanya Raasi gang is BACK. #ENERepeat #ENE.” A release date has yet to be announced.