Sudha Kongara Apologises For Confusing Jyotirao Phule With VD Savarkar

Award-winning director Sudha Kongara may have won a lot of accolades for her film Soorarai Pottru starring Suriya but her endeavour to remake the film in Hindi with Akshay Kumar backfired. The Hindi remake titled Sarfira became a box office bomb despite receiving positive reviews. Nevertheless, Sudha Kongara attended various promotional campaigns for Sarfira before its release and during one such occasion, she made a goof-up while delivering a speech, which caused widespread backlash. Sudha Kongara has now apologised for the same.

In an interview with Cineulagam on July 23, she addressed a question about her highly anticipated film Purananooru, where she collaborates with actor Suriya once more. Discussing the delays in the film’s progress, she explained that the subject matter is deeply personal to her, describing it as an “anti-oppression film”. She emphasised her connection to the film, stating, “That’s what resonates with me. It reflects my ideology. It’s what I advocate in my films.”

She then went on to say that she was a student in history and that nationalist VD Savarkar worked to empower women to pursue education. She mentioned that VD Savarkar encouraged his wife to pursue education despite societal criticism. However, this story is associated with Jyotirao Phule and his wife Savitribai Phule, who were renowned educators and reformers known for their efforts in educating Dalit, tribal, and OBC women. Sudha Kongara was severely criticised for confusing Jyotirao Phule with VD Savarkar. The filmmaker has now responded with an apology on her X account:

In her post, she said that she gave the interview based on what her teacher had told her when she was 17 and apologised for not having fact-checked it before making the statement. She added that it was a mistake on her part and showed her gratitude towards those who corrected her. She ended her post with a salute to Jyotirao Phule and his wife Savitribhai Phule.