In the soft afternoon light filtering through a packed press room in Kerala, Srikanth Kandragula stood not as a producer, but as a man trying to make sense of a storm he never saw coming.
He didn’t arrive with anger. There were no sharp denials. No PR-buffed declarations. Only a plea — raw, real, human.
“I didn’t grow up in Kerala,” he began. “But I fell in love with this land, with its stories, its soul. Soothravakyam wasn’t just a film for me. It was a heartbeat.”
Now, that heartbeat is under siege.
A Statement from the Heart, Not the Head
Srikanth’s words weren’t read from a pre-drafted memo. They came, as he said, “from a place of pain.” Pain — not only of the allegations themselves, but of what they might mean for an industry he has grown to revere.
When actor Vinci bravely shared her story, Srikanth says he was shaken — not because it implicated the production, but because someone he worked with had carried that weight in silence.
“Speaking out takes immense courage. And Vinci did that. I stand with her right to be heard. Silence only fuels suffering.”
The Call for Justice, Not Just for the Film — but the Culture
Srikanth announced that the production team has initiated a formal review process with the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC), with a session scheduled on April 21.
“We want truth. Not cover-ups. Not spin. Just truth.”
He extended the invitation to anyone else who may have experienced distress on set. “Every voice matters,” he insisted, echoing the broader cultural shift pushing Indian cinema toward introspection.
A Film in the Crossfire
Soothravakyam was envisioned as a cinematic celebration of Malayalam culture, crafted by a team of over 300 people — editors, lighting crews, costume designers, script assistants, many of whom remain unnamed and unseen.
Today, that vision teeters on the edge of collapse.
“Please don’t let one controversy bury their dreams,” he pleaded. “Don’t punish a film for a wound it didn’t inflict.”
The Weight of Rumors
Alongside the original allegation, the production has been battered by viral claims — from drug use on set to accusations of manufacturing controversy for film promotion. Srikanth responded to those with quiet resolve.
“We didn’t sell pain as publicity. And there were no drugs on our set to my knowledge. We worked ourselves to the bone — not for headlines, but for the love of the story.”
Producer Srikanth Kandragula One Final Ask
Toward the end of his statement, his voice cracked. He wasn’t just addressing journalists now — he was speaking to every viewer, every artist, every silent fighter in cinema.
“Don’t kill the film for a mistake I didn’t commit. Don’t kill me for something I didn’t know.”
It wasn’t an act of self-defense. It was an invitation — to think deeper, judge slower, and remember that in every frame of every film, there are hundreds of unheard lives who deserve to be seen for what they created — not what they were caught in.
The Bigger Picture
This controversy will pass through legal paths and public judgment. But what remains, Srikanth hopes, is a new standard — where justice is real, not performative. Where transparency is policy, not a press release. Where cinema is not a casualty of chaos, but a place of honest art.
“Malayalam cinema gave me a home,” Srikanth said quietly, “and today I’m fighting to protect its soul.”
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