Young Malayalam actor Mamitha Baiju on Thursday released a public statement after her comments on working with Kollywood director Bala kicked up a row. The Premalu star clarified that she never experienced any mental or physical harm from Bala's part and his behaviour was not abusive in any manner.
In an interview, Mamitha Baiju was reported as saying that while working for Vanangaan, Bala used to scold her and even beat her. He used to beat me from behind," the actor has said.
The 22-year-old actor, in a story on her official Instagram handle, said that the said that the interview clip was taken out of context. "I would like to clarify that the news being circulated online regarding my involvement with a Tamil film is absolutely baseless. An excerpt from a film promotion interview, has been taken out of context and is being clearly misquoted to create this irresponsible headline," Mamitha's story read.
Mamitha Baiju released her clarification via Instagram
She also clarified the circumstances that led to her backing out from the movie. "I opted out of that film later on, only because of other professional commitments," the Instagram story said.
"I have worked with Bala Sir for close to a year including pre-production and production of the film. He has always been kind enough to help me become a better actor," Mamitha's post said.
What was said in the interview?
In the said viral interview clip, the actor recalled, "There is something called Villadichampaatu in the movie. So I asked the director if my character had been doing this for a long time or trying it for the first time. The director told me this is something that the character is well-versed in."
Mamitha Baiju said Bala then pointed to a woman (a Villadichampaatu artiste) and asked her to observe her. "He immediately told me to start the shoot. I wasn't exactly ready. I had no idea what they were singing. I learned to do it in three takes. I was repeatedly rebuked by the director during the shoot."
She said the director had warned her that he would be scolding her during the takes, but she shouldn't be taking those seriously. "He used to beat me from behind," the actor revealed.
When asked how her co-actor Suriya reacted to this, she said Suriya was familiar with Bala's style of functioning as they have worked with each other previously.
Full transcript of Mamitha Baiju's Instagram story:
Hello Everyone, I would like to clarify that the news being circulated online regarding my involvement with a Tamil film is absolutely baseless. An excerpt from a film promotion interview, has been taken out of context and is being clearly misquoted to create this irresponsible headline. I have worked with Bala Sir for close to a year including pre-production and production of the film. He has always been kind enough to help me become a better actor. I would like to reiterate that I have not experienced any mental or physical harm or any other sort of abusive behaviour during my work on that film. I opted out of that film later on, only because of other professional commitments. I would also like to thank those Media Houses who have contacted me to verify the news before publishing. Thank you for your understanding!
