Mohanlal’s Thudarum Hit By Plagiarism Row; Filmmaker Sanal Alleges Script Was Stolen From His Story

Thudarum Controversy: Director Tharun Moorthy's film, Thudarum, starring Mohanlal, has become embroiled in a plagiarism dispute. Filmmaker Sanal Kumar Sasidharan alleges that the movie is based on his unproduced project, Theeyattam. Despite its box office success, the film faces scrutiny over these claims.

Sanal Kumar Sasidharan took to social media to express his grievances. He accused the makers of Thudarum of borrowing the framework of his screenplay but failing to capture its emotional essence. To substantiate his claims, he plans to release the full script of Theeyattam online for public comparison.

Plagiarism Allegations

In a Facebook post, Sanal stated, "I saw the movie Thudarum. It's made by stealing the skeleton of my screenplay, Theeyattam, which I wrote in 2020. The core of it, however, remains safe; either because they (the makers of the Mohanlal-starrer) lacked the intelligence to understand its essence or because they deliberately avoided it in their attempt to rewrite it unrecognisably."

Sanal elaborated on his story's plot involving an auto-rickshaw driver named Ambi. Ambi is framed by police after a murder occurs inside his vehicle, with a severed head left behind. He pointed out that a specific dialogue from his screenplay was used in Thudarum unnecessarily.

Original Project Details

Theeyattam was initially planned with actors Manju Warrier, Tovino Thomas, Murali Gopy, and Sudheer Karamana in key roles. An agreement had been reached with Century Films for production. Sanal mentioned that due to the passage of five years, those involved might have forgotten about it.

Thudarum was penned by KR Sunil and directed by Tharun Moorthy. Produced under Rejaputhra Visual Media by M Renjith, it featured actors like Prakash Varma and Binu Pappu. The film grossed Rs 234.5 crore worldwide and became one of the top-grossing Malayalam films.

Box Office Success

The film premiered on JioHotstar on May 30 and enjoyed significant commercial success. It became the third-highest-grossing Malayalam film ever with its impressive earnings globally.

Sanal plans to publish his screenplay soon for public viewing. He believes this will allow audiences to judge for themselves whether Thudarum indeed borrowed from Theeyattam.