Lokah Chapter 1 | Is THIS the dialogue for which Dulquer Salmaan's Wayfarer Films apologised to people of Karnataka?

Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra has set the box office on fire since its release, be it in Kerala, rest of India or overseas. The fantasy action film, starring Kalyani Priyadarshan and Naslen in lead roles, has been appreciated for it's grandeur, technical finesse and perfection in storytelling. Directed by Dominic Arun and produced by Dulquer Salmaan's Wayfarer Films, Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra has grossed close to Rs.80 crores worldwide in its first five days and has become a historic blockbuster.

While everything seemed rosy till yesterday, there was a slight blip today (September 2), as Wayfarer Films on their X account, issued a public apology. It was addressed to the people of Karnataka for a dialogue that many accused of offending people of the state. While the outrage hadn't spiked up, Dulquer and his team decided to nip it in the bud straightaway with an apology.

"It has come to our attention that a dialogue delivered by one of the characters in our film Lokah Chapter One has unintentionally hurt the sentiments of people from Karnataka," read the initial lines from Wayfarer Films's statement.

"At Wayfarer Films, we place people above everything else. We deeply regret the oversight and assure you that no offence was intended. The dialogue in question will be edited/removed at the earliest. We sincerely apologise for the hurt caused and humbly request you to accept our apology."

According to sources, the incident is about the dialogue uttered by Sandy Master's character Nachiyappa Gowda who refers to the women of Karnataka as 'dagar' in one of his conversations. Now, 'dagar' means prostitute in Kannada and this hasn't gone down well with the people of Karnataka who have taken offence to the dialogue. The counter argument, however, illogical to be questioning the wordings of a film's antagonist who is clearly shown to be a misogynist. Should he then, speak in a more grammatically poetic language despite being a crude antagonist?

That said, in today's social media era, people are just looking for reasons to get offended and sometimes, such outrages can affect the goodwill of a film. Which is why Dulquer and Wayfarer Films decided to take the precautionary step. What happens to that dialogue in the film will be known as the edited version should hit the screens this week itself. Regardless, Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra should continue its victory march at the box office.