By now, it's common knowlege that mana Telugu power star Pawan Kalyan's hardest critic is none other than former Bigg Boss contestant Mahesh Kathi.

Pawan's next film Agnyaathavaasi is all set for release on January 10. Tickets are selling like hot cakes abroad, PSPK fan associations are running contests and theatres are gearing up to screen one of the most anticipated films of the year. However, back here in India there seems to be a bit of a dampened spirits everywhere owing to the plagiarism controversy that has hit the film.

It is a known fact that Agnyaathavaasi is directed by Trivikram Srinivas and the director needs no introduction. In fact, he's known as the wizard of words for writing punch dialogues in all his movies. So one can't believe that his film could have drawn inspiration from a French movie. For those wondering what this is all about, well Agnyaathavaasi is said be a copy of the French film Largo Winch.

Read about it here Pawan’s Agnyaathavaasi in Plagiarism Row: French Director Tweets

Now, the first to point this out was none other than Kathi Mahesh. Being a bitter critic of the actor, how could he have known? The first time he said it was a plagiarised copy was when the makers released the teaser.

Read: Agnyaathavaasi Copied From Belgian Comic Book: Mahesh Kathi

And nobody took him seriously given that he's always taking potshots at Pawan. But now the news has reached the ears of French director of the film Largo Winch. (Is This The Story Of Agnyaathavaasi?)

Now, they say there's no smoke without fire. Every media house has picked up this story and played it. What we are wondering is how could Mahesh Kathi have made such a bold comment about a film without any proof? Did a member from the Agnyaathavaasi leak any information to the film critic? If so, who did it? Just saying!

Agnyaathavaasi has been slated for release on January 10. But the promotions for now have been put on the back burner for reasons best known to the maker. Let's see what happens next. We are all ears to find out more. So keep an eye on this space for updates because you will read it here first.