Hyderabad:

A Telangana court today told state minister Konda Surekha to take down her social media posts linking BRS working president KT Rama Rao to the divorce of actors Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Naga Chaitanya.

A city civil court in Hyderabad was hearing a petition by Mr Rao, who had filed a Rs 100 crore defamation suit against the minister.

Ms Surekha, who is Telangana’s Minister for Forest and Environment, stoked controversy earlier this month when she alleged that KT Rama Rao, commonly known as KTR, was the reason behind Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s divorce in 2021.

She claimed that KTR, a former minister, tapped the phones of actresses and blackmailed them. In this connection, she said he was behind the divorce of the actors. 

“It is KT Rama Rao because of whom (actress) Samantha’s divorce happened… He was a minister at that time and used to tap the phones of the actresses and then find their weaknesses to blackmail them… He used to make them drug addicts and then do this… Everyone knows this, Samantha, Naga Chaitanya, his family — everybody is aware that such a thing happened,” she had said.

Both actors released separate statements, calling the remarks “absolutely ridiculous” and asking the minister to be “responsible and respectful of individuals’ privacy”.

Mr Chaitanya’s father and famous Telugu actor Akkineni Nagarjuna also filed a defamation case against Ms Surekha, alleging that the minister’s remarks damaged his family’s reputation. 

Several cine personalities such as Chiranjeevi, junior NTR, Mahesh Babu, and Vijay Devarakonda also hit out at the Congress leader.

Amid the massive backlash surrounding her remark, Ms Surekha apologised to the actors and their families.

“I spoke about a family. It was an unexpected slip of the tongue on my part. When I saw their tweets, I felt bad. When I realised that, I felt bad that I hurt someone. So I unconditionally withdraw my statement. But in KTR’s case, there is no going back. I demand his apology,” the minister said.

New Delhi:

Actor Ram Charan on Thursday joined several other Telugu stars slamming Telangana Minister Konda Surekha for her remarks linking Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader KT Rama Rao with the divorce of actors Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu.

Mr Charan, who played one of the lead roles in the Oscar-winning film “RRR”, said the film industry stands together and won’t tolerate such “reckless behaviour” aimed at them.

“The statements made by Konda Surekha garu are irresponsible and baseless. Making vulgar public comments about respected individuals is shocking, especially coming from an elected leader who holds public office. This kind of slander aims to destroy the fundamentals of our society.,” he said in a statement posted on X.

“Our private lives are sacred to us and deserve due respect. We are public figures, we must uplift, not tear one another,” Mr Charan wrote further.

pic.twitter.com/hiTPgCvLOo

— Ram Charan (@AlwaysRamCharan) October 3, 2024

Ms Surekha on Wednesday alleged that KT Rama Rao, commonly known as KTR, was the reason behind Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s divorce in 2021.

Both actors also released separate statements, calling the remarks “absolutely ridiculous” and asking the minister to be “responsible and respectful of individuals’ privacy”.

Mr Chaitanya’s father and famous Telugu actor Akkineni Nagarjuna filed a defamation case against Ms Surekha, alleging that the minister’s remarks damaged his family’s reputation. 

Several cine personalities such as Chiranjeevi, junior NTR, Mahesh Babu, and Vijay Devarakonda also hit out at the minister, who withdrew her remarks on Thursday after a massive uproar.

Speaking to mediapersons, Ms Surekha said she had to take the names of the actors after she became emotional over the comments made by the KTR, the BRS’ working president, about her.

“I had to criticise him (Rama Rao). I do not have any personal animosity towards anyone. Taking the name of a family was inadvertent. I felt really bad after seeing her Samantha’s post,” she said.

Amid the massive backlash surrounding her remark on the divorce of celebrity couple Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Telangana Minister Konda Surekha apologised to the actors’ families, but did not back down from her allegations against Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader KT Rama Rao.

Hyderabad:

Top stars of the Telugu film industry have come out strongly against Telangana Minister Konda Surekha’s remarks linking Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader KT Rama Rao with the divorce of actors Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu.

Veteran actor Chiranjeevi said in a post on X that he was “extremely pained” to see the “disgraceful remarks” by the minister.

I am extremely pained to see the disgraceful remarks made by an honourable woman minister.

It is a shame that celebs and members of film fraternity become soft targets as they provide instant reach and attention. We as Film Industry stand united in opposing such vicious verbal…

— Chiranjeevi Konidela (@KChiruTweets) October 3, 2024

“It is a shame that celebs and members of film fraternity become soft targets as they provide instant reach and attention. We as Film Industry stand united in opposing such vicious verbal assaults on our members,” Mr Chiranjeevi said.

“No one should stoop to this level for scoring political points by dragging unconnected people and more so women into their political slug fest and make distasteful fictional allegations. We choose our leaders to make the society a better place to live in, and not contaminate it by lowering the discourse. Politicians and people in honourable positions should set better examples. Trust the concerned will make amends and withdraw these malicious remarks immediately,” he added.

Konda Surekha garu, dragging personal lives into politics is a new low. Public figures, especially those in responsible positions like you, must maintain dignity and respect for privacy. It’s disheartening to see baseless statements thrown around carelessly, especially about the…

— Jr NTR (@tarak9999) October 2, 2024

Another top actor to respond to the massive row surrounding the Congress leader was NT Rama Rao Junion, popularly known Jr NTR. The ‘RRR’ actor put out a post addressing the minister and said “dragging personal lives into politics is a new low”. “Public figures, especially those in responsible positions like you, must maintain dignity and respect for privacy. It’s disheartening to see baseless statements thrown around carelessly, especially about the film industry”.

“We will not sit quietly while others make baseless allegations against us. We should rise above this and maintain respect for each other’s boundaries. Let’s ensure our society does not normalize such reckless behavior in democratic India,” the actor said.

#FilmIndustryWillNotToleratepic.twitter.com/sxTOyBZStB

— Allu Arjun (@alluarjun) October 3, 2024

Renowned actor Allu Arjun strongly condemned the remarks with a post and hashtag: “#FilmIndustryWillNotTolerate”.

“I strongly condemn the baseless derogatory comments made about film personalities and film families. This behavior is deeply disrespectful and goes against the values of our Telugu culture. Such irresponsible actions should not be accepted as normal. I urge the parties involved to act more responsibly and respect individual privacy, especially towards women. We must promote respect and dignity in society as a whole,” the Pushpa actor said.

Disgusting to see politicians thinking that they can get away talking any kind of nonsense. When your words can be so irresponsible it’s stupid of us to expect that you will have any responsibility for your people. It’s not just about actors or cinema. This is not abt any…

— Nani (@NameisNani) October 2, 2024

Actor Nani said it was “disgusting to see politicians thinking that they can get away talking any kind of nonsense”. “When your words can be so irresponsible it’s stupid of us to expect that you will have any responsibility for your people. It’s not just about actors or cinema. This is not abt any political party. It is not okay for someone in such a respectable position to talk such utter baseless rubbish infront of media and think that it is okay. We all should condemn such practice which will reflect poorly on our society,” he said in a post on X.

Ms Surekha sparked a massive row while accusing BRS leader and former minister KT Rama Rao of tapping the phones of actresses and blackmailing them. “It is KT Rama Rao because of whom (actress) Samantha’s divorce happened… He was a minister at that time and used to tap the phones of the actresses and then find their weaknesses to blackmail them… He used to make them drug addicts and then do this… Everyone knows this, Samantha, Naga Chaitanya, his family — everybody is aware that such a thing happened,” the minister said. 

The remarks drew a sharp response from Nagarjuna Akkineni, veteran actor and Naga Chaitanya’s father. “I strongly condemn the comments of the Honorable Minister Mrs. Konda Surekha. Don’t use the lives of movie stars who stay away from politics to criticize your opponents. Please respect other people’s privacy. As a woman in a responsible position, your comments and accusations against our family are completely irrelevant and false. I request you to withdraw your comments immediately.”

Naga Chaitanya said the decision of a divorce is “one of the most painful and unfortunate life decisions one has to make”.

After a lot of thought, a mutual decision was made by me and my former spouse to part ways. It was a decision made in peace, owing to our different life goals and in the interest of moving forward with respect and dignity as two mature adults. However, there have been various baseless and completely ridiculous gossips on the matter so far. I have remained silent all this while out of deep respect for my earlier spouse as well as my family,” he said.

“Today, the claim made by Minister Konda surekha garu is not only false, it is absolutely ridiculous and unacceptable. Women deserve to be supported and respected. Taking advantage and exploiting the personal life decisions of celebrities for the sake of media headlines is shameful,” he added.

Samantha Ruth Prabhu said it takes a lot of courage and strength for a woman to survive in a glamorous industry where women are more often than not treated as props. “Konda Surekha Garu, I am proud of what this journey turned me into please don’t trivialise it. I hope you realise that your words carry significant weight as a minister. I implore you to be responsible and respectful of individuals’ privacy. My divorce is a personal matter, and I request that you refrain from speculating about it. Our choice to keep things private doesn’t invite misrepresentation,” she said in a social media post.

“To clarify: my divorce was mutual consent and amicable, with no political conspiracy involved. Could you please keep my name out of political battles? I have always remained non-political and wish to continue doing so,” she added.

Amid the massive backlash, Ms Surekha issued a clarification and said her remark was aimed at questioning KT Rama Rao for “belittling women” and she did not intend to hurt Samantha Prabhu’s sentiments.

“My comments are meant to question a leader’s belittling of women and not to hurt your (Samantha Prabhu) sentiments. The way you have grown up with self-power is not only an admiration for me but also an ideal…If you or your fans are offended by my comments, I unconditionally retract my comments. Don’t think otherwise,” she said.

KTR, son of former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, has now sent a defamation notice to the minister and accused the ruling Congress of resorting to “disgusting and nauseating politics”. 

Hyderabad:

Telangana’s Forests Minister Konda Surekha has triggered a massive controversy with her allegations against Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader KT Rama Rao – linking him with the divorce of actors Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu, drugs and blackmail. Her comments have drawn a sharp response from Naga Chaitanya’s father, veteran Telugu actor Nagarjuna Akkineni, who said her remarks are “completely irrelevant and false” and demanded that she withdraws them.

“I strongly condemn the comments of the Honorable Minister Mrs. Konda Surekha. Don’t use the lives of movie stars who stay away from politics to criticize your opponents. Please respect other people’s privacy,” read a rough translation of his post on X, formerly Twitter. 

“As a woman in a responsible position, your comments and accusations against our family are completely irrelevant and false. I request you to withdraw your comments immediately,” he added.

Mr Rao has not commented on the matter but his party leader and former minister Harish Rao Thanneeru has demanded an unconditional apology from the Congress leader. 

In a scathing attack on KT Rama Rao, son of former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, Ms Surekha said he was the reason why many actresses left the film industry and married early. KT Rama Rao, she claimed, blackmailed film personalities after getting them addicted to drugs.

She also said that she suspected that the BRS leader was behind a series of offensive posts against her.

The Congress leader had faced abuse online after a photo showing BJP leader and Medak MP Raghunandan Rao placing a garland around her neck at a programme. She accused BRS leaders of using the incident to demean her using her gender.

Naga Chaitanya, who parted ways with Samantha Ruth Prabhu two years ago, got engaged to actor Sobhita Dhulipala in August.