New Delhi: The trailer of Sidharth Malhotra and Janhvi Kapoor starrer Param Sundari was recently launched. While fans are appreciating the romantic drama’s trailer, some are also calling out the makers for portraying the character as a stereotyped “South Indian.”
Raising her concerns, Malayalam actress and singer Pavithra Menon took to Instagram to slam the filmmakers for continuing the trend of misinterpreting Malayalis in Hindi cinema and for not casting South Indian actors to play regional roles in Bollywood movies.
However, the video was deleted within hours of posting it.
On Thursday, Pavithra shared a video in which she is heard saying, “I am a Malayali, and I watched the trailer of Param Sundari, and this is what I think.”
She then played a clip from the trailer where Janhvi’s character introduces herself in heavily accented Hindi: “Main Thekkapatil Damodaran Sundaram Pillai, Kerala se.”
Pavithra reacts and says, “Wait, what? Before we go further into the trailer, I want to address this: What’s the problem in hiring a proper Malayali actor? Hum kam talented hote hain kya (Are we less talented)?” The actor then speaks in Hindi and says, “This is not how it happens in Kerala. Like how I am talking in Hindi, I can also speak Malayalam really well.”
Pavithra adds, “Is it so hard to find a Malayali to play the role in a Hindi movie?” She then addresses the stereotypical depiction of Malayalis in Hindi films and says, “We have done such things in Malayalam films of the 90s when we had to show Punjabis (does an exaggerated balle balle). But now it’s 2025. I think everybody knows how a Malayali talks, and how they are as normal as anybody else. We don’t just wear jasmine flowers and do Mohiniyattam everywhere.”
In her caption, Pavithra clarified, “I mean no hate to Janhvi here but why try this hard?” Many agreed with her thoughts; however, the video was later deleted.
Fans’ Reactions:
“At least a Malayali dubbing artist would have been better,” a user wrote.
Another said Bollywood stereotypes are not limited to Malayalis but also extend to Bengalis: “Not only Malayalam but also Bengalis. There is a notion in Bollywood that all the Bengali girls just wear saree, bindi and kohl. They always sing Tagore’s songs. And the most horrific part is the fake Bengali accent. Why, dude, why?! We also have so many talented actresses in Bengali cinema. But still they choose some random Bollywood actresses who can’t even portray it.”
A third wrote, “At least a Malayali dubbing artist would have been better.”
About Param Sundari
Sidharth and Janhvi’s love story as Param and Sundari is set to release on August 29. The movie is helmed by Tushar Jalota, with music by Sachin–Jigar and lyrics penned by Amitabh Bhattacharya. Apart from Janhvi and Sidharth, Param Sundari also features Renji Panicker, Siddhartha Shankar, Manjot Singh, Sanjay Kapoor, and Inayat Verma in supporting roles.