South actor Kasthuri Shankar, who made a controversial remark on the Telugu-speaking people of Tamil Nadu which sparked a debate, was produced before a court in Chennai on Sunday, after which she was sent to judicial custody till November 29.
After her arrest in Hyderabad on November 16 by a Chennai police team, her anticipatory bail was also rejected by the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court, which called her remarks “unwarranted”. Police had been on search for her after she went missing from her home in Chennai and switched off her mobile phone.
Soon after the controversy, the actor had withdrawn her statements and apologised. However, in the meanwhile, complaints were filed against her with the police. A Chennai police team traced her to a film producer’s house in Hyderabad and lodged her in jail. She was brought to Chennai and produced before a magistrate court at Egmore which sent her to judicial custody till November 29. Later on, she was sent to the Puzhal central prison. Tamil nationalist, Naam Tamizhar Katchi chief Seeman felt it was necessary to arrest her even after she issued an apology.
What did Kasthuri say?
The 50-year-old, known for her performances in films like Indian and Annamayya, had fuelled a huge controversy after her offensive remarks against Telugu people. While talking at a public event in Tamil Nadu, she had said that Telugu people were descendants of the courtesans who had served kings in ancient times.
As per the actor, people who follow to a specific political ideology, claim themselves to be Tamils, despite their Telugu origin, do not consider Tamil Brahmins as Tamils. That was the reason behind them claiming their identity of ‘Dravidian’ not choosing ‘Tamil,’ as their ideology.