Tamil actor Vijay Sethupathi, lauded for his acting skills, was a darling of Malayali film lovers till recently. But things have changed. All he did was welcoming the Supreme Court verdict permitting the entry of women of all ages in the Sabaraimala temple. He had called it “a welcome change”. The comments, however, did not go down well with certain segments in the state and he has been viciously trolled on the social media.
In a recent interview on the sets of Seenu Ramasamy's Maamanithan in Alappuzha, Vijay had stated that he was a “big fan” of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, while stressing again how happy he was with women entering the hill shrine. This landed him in a controversy.
The actor had reportedly said, “The Chief Minister is right on the Sabarimala issue. I don’t understand why there’s such uproar about it. Women have to bear certain pain every month. We all know why it happens and it is a holy thing, thanks to which we are all here. It is much easier to be a man and people should understand it.”
The Supreme Court verdict had literally split the people of Kerala on religious and political grounds with several devotees and pro-Hindu outfits holding dharnas and marches in different parts of the state expressing their displeasure. Vijay Sethupathi was not spared either.
A few organisations have even called for a ban on his films in Kerala, a state in which he enjoys a big fan base. While that sounds extreme and unlikely to happen, many people have asked the actor to just stick to his acting business and not interfere in matters that he is not familiar with.
Someone commented on his FB post with hash tags #shameonyou and #savesabarimala, “Before expressing your views on Sabarimala issue, find some time to study about the history and beliefs of the temple. Majority of Keralites hate our Hitler CM Pinarayi Vijayan for the Sabarimala issue.”
Another one asked the actor to know about the folklore of Lord Ayyappa and their culture and beliefs before commenting on the issue. “Please don’t interfere and say unwanted views,” he said. A few others have supported the Vikram Vedha actor for his radical approach, using hash tags #Respectvijaysethupathi #Welovevijaysethupathi and #Wesupportvijaysethupathi. “First, he earned our respect through his acting skills, then he earned our respect through his stand on the Sabarimala issue,” they said. “He is someone who came from the lower strata of society. Respect to our Makkal Selvan for upholding progressive values and accepting the laws of the highest court of the country,” posted a user.
In addition to Maamanithan, which marks the collaboration of Yuvan Shankar Raja, Ilaiyaraaja and Karthik Raja for the first time, Vijay is currently busy with films like Super Deluxe, in which he will share the screen space with Fahadh Faasil, his Telugu debut Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy and many under-production projects like Thuglak. He is all set to make his Mollywood debut with the Jayaram film Marconi Mathai.
