Almost a year after Priya Prakash Varrier achieved internet fame as the “wink girl”, the actor is back in the news. Priya is making her Bollywood debut with the upcoming Sridevi Bungalow, directed by Prasanth Mambully. Now the film has gotten caught in a controversy, as it has been accused of lifting from the late Bollywood icon Sridevi’s life.
Sridevi passed away last year in what came as a shock to fans and industry alike. In Sridevi Bungalow, Priya plays an actor allegedly modelled after the namesake. The teaser for the film received flak for showing a woman dead in a bathtub, an apparent reference to actor Sridevi’s death due to accidental drowning in similar circumstances.
In an interview with Times of India, Priya defended the film and its teaser saying, “Sridevi is just the name of my character in the movie. Who would want to create such controversies? I think the curiosity surrounding the trailer is good and we have to leave it to the audience to judge if the film is based on the veteran actress Sridevi ma’am.”
Sridevi's husband producer Boney Kapoor is not taking the similarities lightly and has slapped a legal notice on the film. Director Prasanth had this to say to an online portal.
“We received a legal notice from Mr Boney Kapoor last week. And we will face it. I want to My film is a suspense thriller. I told him (Boney Kapoor) that Sridevi is a common name. My film’s character also happens to be an actress. We will face it (the legal case).”Prasanth Mambully
Priya on the other hand, has neither confirmed nor denied that the film is based on the late actor’s life.
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