Controversy over 'Balagam' story: Director Venu speaks his mind

Venu Tillu, who is a top comedian in Telugu cinema, made his directorial debut with 'Balagam' starring Priyadarshi, Kavya Kalyanam, Sudhakar Reddy, Jayaram and other stars. The movie was released on March 3rd, and received positive reviews from the audience as well as critics alike.

Prominent journalist Gaddam Satish, who watched the premiere show of this movie, made controversial allegations against the makers and director Venu regarding the story of the movie. Speaking at the media event held at the press club on Saturday, Satish said, ''I am working in daily newspaper. This story was written by me in 2011, and it was published in the Sunday magazine on December 24, 2014. Dil Raju has turned this story into a commercial movie and is making money from it.''

''Pachiki means bird. Generally, when humans die, they provide food for the birds. After a person's death, for three, five, or seven days, they offer food to the birds. I have written a story and titled it Pachiki. The word "balagam" is not the correct term. Blgamas Satish is the right word for the context, Satish clarified. Pachiki story is proof that the story of this film is mine. I need to be given the recognition I deserve. The original story in the movie titles should be credited to me. I will be happy if they officially announce this matter, otherwise I will take legal action aginst the film’s team. We are consulting with lawyers to approach the court,'' Gaddam Satish said.

Director Venu reacted seriously on the same matter. During media conference, he said, ‘’We are a very big family. Three great-aunts, three great-grandmothers, three great-uncles. If all our family is combined, we will be more than 100. Both marriage and death are celebrated in Telangana. When my father died, these hundred people came for the rituals. The concept of bitter mouth exists in Telangana. We will share the pain with people by drinking together. It is a part of the Telangana culture. I was 18 old and I saw a new world with so many emotions involved in death. Since then, hundreds of situations stuck in my mind. Our grandmother passed away 15 days after my second elder father died. I was busy with movies then and couldn't go.''

He added, ''In Telangana, Budaga Jangamalu sing a song when our elders die. When my grandfather and grandmother died, they sang a song for them. I remember the incident. This is a great thing and I just wanted to use this in my film. Feeding crows for the shradh is our tradition. When I wanted to write a story, I wrote the comedy scenes first.''

''I wrote this story. Talk to me if you have any problem. Please don't bother Dil Raju garu. I read the story raw. He touched the point of environment in his story. It has nothing to do with my story. Both are different,'' Venu concluded.