Tamil actress Kasthuri arrested in Hyderabad over anti-Telugu jibe

Hyderabad: Popular actress Kasthuri Shankar, who played a pivotal role in Bharateeyudu (1996), was arrested by the Chennai police from Gachibowli, Hyderabad on Saturday.

The controversy erupted when Kasthuri made objectionable comments about Telugu people while advocating for a special law to protect Brahmins. Her remarks sparked outrage on social media, prompting her to issue an apology.

Last month, the actress had allegedly made derogatory remarks against the Telugu community, and the Madurai Thirunagar police had registered a case against her. She was taken into custody a day after the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court dismissed the anticipatory bail petition filed by the actress.

The Madurai court observed that the petitioner cannot escape the consequences by apologizing after making objectionable remarks through public platforms. Passing the order, Justice N Anand Venkatesh said the petitioner did not make a sincere effort in her public apology on social media.

“The petitioner’s speech clearly hovers around hate speech. In a diverse country like ours, there must be zero tolerance whenever such speech is made by demeaning or insulting a particular group of people based on their language,” he said.

Popular actress #KasthuriShankar, who played a pivotal role in #Bharateeyudu (1996), was arrested by the Chennai police in Hyderabad on Saturday. It has been learnt Tamil Nadu police have arrested her in #Gachibowli. Earlier, the actress had allegedly made derogatory remarks… pic.twitter.com/9RXmZ5SxEA

— Hyderabad Mail (@Hyderabad_Mail) November 16, 2024