The Iranian Embassy in Zimbabwe made a rather bold claim on Wednesday, suggesting on social media that US President Donald Trump had shifted his movie preferences from Hollywood to Bollywood. The post on X appeared to mock Trump over his threat at the United Nations to “annihilate” Iran. However, there was one notable error: the movie clip used to illustrate Trump’s supposed Bollywood viewing was actually taken from a Telugu action film.
During his address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump listed several of his achievements as president and presented Iran with what he described as two options — annihilation or negotiations. Addressing delegates from around the world, he asked whether he should “annihilate the Islamic Republic” quickly or “drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness or generations”.
The Iranian Embassy in Zimbabwe responded by poking fun at the US President, suggesting on X that his comments may have been influenced by watching “Bollywood”.
“Trump talks about annihilating Iran. But he knows Iran is not defenceless,” the post said, before adding, “Since we informed they have recently been watching Bollywood instead of Hollywood.”
The post concluded with a clip showing an action hero using a manhole cover to battle a group of villains armed with Kalashnikovs in an Indian action movie — which the embassy suggested Trump may or may not have watched.
However, despite Bollywood being known for producing its share of extravagant action movies, the Iranian embassy’s choice of footage contained a major mix-up. The scene was actually from Bhagavanth Kesari, a Telugu-language film.
Directed by Anil Ravipudi, the film features Nandamuri Balakrishna as the lead character Nelakonda Bhagavanth Kesari, along with Sreeleela, Kajal Aggarwal and Arjun Rampal.
The movie combines Balakrishna’s trademark mass-oriented presentation, powerful dialogues and elaborate action scenes with a story centred on women’s empowerment. The plot follows Kesari as he helps his late friend’s daughter Vijji deal with personal trauma and develop the confidence and resilience needed to join the Indian Army.
Bhagavanth Kesari received both critical praise and commercial success. It also won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu at the 71st National Film Awards in 2025. Its story, which focuses on a guardian helping a young woman develop strength and resilience, was reportedly an inspiration for the underlying narrative of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay’s political action film Jana Nayagan.
Users on X were quick to notice the embassy’s confusion between Bollywood and Telugu cinema.
“This is not Bollywood. It is Tollywood and Telugu film industry. They have the same relationship with physics and logic that Iran and the US have with each other,” one user wrote.
Another posted, “Player – Iran. Enemy – US. Playground – Zimbabwe embassy. Game used South Indian movie action scene. Language – Hindi. What a tactical move. Hail Iran.”
The Iranian Embassy’s social media account has previously used humour to take jabs at the US President. As for whether Trump actually watches Bollywood or Telugu action films, however, there is little evidence to establish that. Trump has previously mentioned watching Hollywood classics including Citizen Kane, The Godfather and Goodfellas, but there is no substantial public indication that Bhagavanth Kesari features on his viewing list.
