Keerthi Prakasam | The News Minute | July 29, 2014 | 6:42 PM IST A state that has had a vibrant movie industry for decades, but still managed to maintain a polite distance from the personal lives of its stars. Unlike Bollywood and other film industries, filmy gossip, specially the personal details and relationships of actors was never much in focus in Kerala. But in the last few years, this trend has been slowly, but noticeably changing.One such case in point is the Dileep- Manju Warrier issue. Dileep, a young hero who quickly rose to challenge some of the big names in the Malayalam film industry like Mohanlal and Mammootty fell in love and married an actress who mesmerized Kerala with her acting skills- Manju Warrier.Sixteen years ago, Manju got married to Dileep against her parents will. At the time, she announced that she will not be acting anymore and the Malayalis also lamented the loss that her decision caused.Now, after years of rumours doing the rounds that the couple were facing problems in their marital life, both have now filed for a joint divorce. Many blamed a young actress’s onscreen chemistry with Dileep as one reason while others blamed it on Manju’s friends like Geethu Mohandas and Samyuktha for “forcing” her to seek divorce.Cameras lined up in the family court to capture a sobbing Manju coming out of the court, along with an evidently awkward looking Dileep. When the couple, two adults who can think for themselves split, media and also the social media went overboard with their speculations, with some even suggesting that Manju must have been a bad mother as her daughter did not want to live with her.Further, an interview of Dileep and the couple’s daughter Meenakshi which appeared in Vanitha, a fortnightly magazine, also made things worse. In the interview, their teenage daughter Meenakshi said that she loved her father the most.The actress also took to Facebook, publishing a three page letter addressed to her fans, she calls it her effort to put an end to the pointless stories that is being circulated around.Manju, who recently made her comeback with the movie- How Old Are You? posted a handwritten letter through which the actress appeals to all to let her be and how much she cherishes her privacy. She says that her close friends and actors- Geethu Mohandas, Swetha Menon, Samyuktha, Bhavana and Poornima Indrajit are being targeted by many for her divorce, which in turn is affecting their professional and personal lives, she appeals to her fans not to target these actresses.Finally she says that as a mother, she knows the love their daughter has for her father, Dileep and that she would not want to keep her away from him. She ends her letter by quoting Bob Marley- You never realize how strong you are, until being strong is the only option you have left.