After the shocking leak of Vijay’s yet to be released movie Jana Nayagan, many in the film fraternity expressed outrage over the incident. Actors and directors from both the Tamil and Telugu industry extended solidarity to Vijay and urged fans to refrain from sharing the pirated film video.
Actors like Chiranjeevi, Suriya, Karthi, Khushbu, Sivakarthikeyan, Jiiva, RJ Balaji, Mohan Babu, Harish Kalyan, GV Prakash, Sibi Satyaraj, Kavin, and directors Karthik Subburaj, Rajkumar Periasamy, Sreenu Vaitla Bobby, among others, condemned the film’s leak.
“The unfortunate leak of #Jananayagan is something that deeply concerns me. Cinema is built on trust, effort, and the collective dreams of many. Such incidents affect all of us in the industry and remind us how crucial it is to protect our creative work. We stand one with KVN Productions in containing the damage and punishing the culprits. Let us all extend our support to respect and protect CINEMA! Kill Piracy. Save Cinema. (sic)” wrote Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi.
Similarly, actor Suriya described the leak as “heartbreaking and unfair”. “...an entire team’s passion reduced to this. I request you all with honesty, please don’t watch, share, or discuss the film here. Respect their work. I stand with my friends and condemn the act, it’s unforgivable!” Suriya said.
Veteran actor and BJP leader Khushbu Sundar said that the leak was a “brutal betrayal” of everyone involved in the movie’s making. “Piracy is not entertainment. It is an organised theft. Those who indulge in it are not let less than any criminals and should be treated as one as in any other crime.”
She added: “The leak of #Jananayagan is a brutal betrayal of every artist, technician, and worker who have poured their blood, sweat, and years into creating something meaningful. One illegal click destroys livelihoods, crush dreams, and cripples an entire industry. This is absolutely unacceptable. There is nothing justified about it.”
Meanwhile, the movie’s production house, KVN Productions, has issued a legal notice threatening criminal action against those storing and sharing the videos online. The notice said that they have already initiated legal action against the person who illegally downloaded and forwarded scenes from the movie.
Jana Nayagan was billed as Vijay’s last film as the actor shifted full-time to politics as the party chief of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). The film also stars Pooja Hegde, Mamitha Baiju, Bobby Deol, and others.
Though the film was supposed to release in January during Pongal, it was stalled by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) after an advisory panel member alleged that the Examination Committee in Chennai approved its release without following due procedure.