Kamal Haasan Kannada-Tamil Row: Ram Gopal Varma Backs Actor Amid 'Thug Life' Ban; 'New Kind Of Hooliganism'

Ram Gopal Varma Backs Kamal Haasan: Kamal Haasan was recently in controversy for saying that the Kannada language was born out of Tamil. After the controversy emerged, the actor said, "I will not apologise for something I said out of love (sic)." As it gained much hype, the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) banned his film 'Thug Life' from the state, claiming political and cultural backlash over the veteran actor's statement. Now, filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma stood in support of Kamal Haasan, facing threats and a ban. But he soon deleted the tweet. Let us take a look at what he said in his now-deleted tweet:

Ram Gopal Varma Backs Kamal Haasan Amid Kannada-Tamil Controversy, But Deletes Later

As per HT reports, taking to social media to call out the threats made against 'Thug Life.' On X, he slammed the backlash as a threat to democratic values. "Democracy's new name is intolerance... threats to ban 'Thug Life' unless Kamal Haasan apologizes amounts to a new kind of hooliganism," he wrote. But the post was quickly deleted.

On the other hand, Kamal Haasan went to the Karnataka High Court seeking the release of his movie 'Thug Life' in the state. Let us further wait to see whether the ban will be lifted.

As per PTI's report, Kamal made the statement over his Kannada-Tamil controversy, saying, "Lets leave all this very in-depth discussions to historians, archaeologists and language experts. If you look at it from the northern point of view, according to them it is right, if you look at it from Thenkumari (south), then what I say is right. There is a third angle to it-- the scholars, the language experts. This is not an answer, an explanation. Love will never apologise (sic)."

Replying to Kamal Haasan going to the High Court, Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) president M Narasimhalu said to PTI, "Let him go to court. None of our theatres will screen it."

In an exclusive conversation with Filmibeat's editor Aashu Mishra, Kamal Haasan talked about his collaboration with Mani Ratnam after almost 4 decades. The veteran actor said, "No, it is that college reunion, they go about minding their business, suddenly they realize you've not met your old friend who could enhance your business, even why didn't I think of it kind of thing. They want to do that, but work keeps them away, and then one day, all of them plan and come together. That's what happened in this, it's as simple as that (sic)."

Thug Life is a Tamil-language film that id directed by Mani Ratnam. Kamal Haasan and Mani Ratnam previously came together for 1987 released film Nayakan. Thug Life is written by both Mani and Kamal and is produced under the banner of Raaj Kamal Films International, Madras Talkies and Red Giant Movies. Besides Kamal in the lead role as Rangaraaya Sakthivel Naicker, stars Silambarasan as Amaran, Trisha Krishnan as Indhrani, Abhirami, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Ashok Selvan, Joju George, Nassar, Pankaj Tripathi and Ali Fazal in key roles.

Thug Life Budget

As per the reports, Thug Life is made on a budget of around Rs. 300 Crore.

As per trade analyst, A B George, 'Thug Life' has made the advance booking sales of more than Rs. 10 Crore+. Three days is still remaining for the release of 'Thug Life.' It is believed that the movie will continue to see a rise in the collection despite the ban in Karnataka. To note, 'Thug Life' will release on June 5, 2025.