Tamil actor Vijay Sethupathi has withdrawn from the Muttiah Muralitharan biopic 800 following a letter from the former Sri Lankan cricketer requesting his withdrawal.
Vijay Sethupathi’s publicist Yuvaraj confirmed the development to The NewsMinute.
The actor also tweeted the letter written to him by Muralitharan, and said “Thank you, goodbye”.
Sethupathi had faced massive backlash for taking on the lead role in the biopic, with the public, politicians and Tamil film industry veterans criticising the popular actor and urging him to withdraw from the film.
Muralitharan’s close relationship with Gotabaya Rajapaksa, his support for the politician and his comments on the civil war in Sri Lanka have made him a controversial public figure among Tamilians.
While Muralitharan and Dar Motion Pictures, the producers of the film, had said the movie was only a sports biography and it would not make any political statement, their claim had been countered by critics who said the cricketer’s politics could not be separated from the story of his life.
Muralitharan’s letter to Sethupathi said, “Keeping in mind that Vijay Sethupathi should not face any unnecessary hurdles in future, I request him to withdraw from this film,” TNM quoted.
On Friday, Muralitharan had responded to criticism of his politics, saying he was accused of being against the Tamils “political reasons” and out of “ignorance.“
Seeking to counter the criticism that he was a “betrayer” of the Tamils and stood by the Lankan establishment during the 2009 civil war, he said he never supported killings of innocent people.
The hill country Tamils in Sri Lanka including him were the first victims of violence, serial bomb blasts and war that stretched for over 30 years in Sri Lanka, he said.
Known as ‘Malayaga Tamizhargal’ among Tamil people, hill country Tamils are of Indian origin in Lanka and they are plantation labourers as distinguished from indigenous Tamils of other regions.
In a statement, the spinner said he understood the pains of war and his family began its journey in Sri Lanka as “coolies” in tea estates. “We have been severely affected,” he said referring to the waves of conflict. His father sustained a sickle attack when he was a seven-year old child and many of his relatives were killed, reducing his family to impoverishment several times.
“Hence, I know the pain of war and the loss it causes.I have never supported the killings of innocent people and will never support that,” he said.
A remark made by him last year was “twisted” to portray as if he had referred to the day of killings of the Tamil people in 2009 as his happiest day, Muralitharan claimed.
Lanka faced war like situation for 30 plus years, and people including him lived amid such a challenge, he said.
“The film 800 is about how I managed to find a place in the cricket team against such a background,” he said.
Directed by MS Sripathy, 800 was to be shot across Sri Lanka, UK, Australia and India, early next year, with plans to release it by the end of 2021.
The film was going to be made primarily in Tamil, and dubbed in all south Indian languages, as well as Hindi, Bengali, and Sinhalese.
While taking on the role, Sethupathi had said the film aimed to be a moving portrayal of the life and times of Muralitharan and of “ethnicity and pride”.
Sethupathi also said he had loved spending time with Muralitharan to understand his life and was touched by his “charming” personality.
“He is like a stamp, he makes a mark wherever he goes with his charming character and personality. I love his real life, because fans have seen him in matches on the field, but very few have got a chance to know Murali sir’s personality off the field.
“He’s very adorable and lovable. He’s such a beautiful person and his story needs to be told,” he had said.
(PTI inputs)