Phanindra Narsetti’s 8 Vasantalu is a coming-of-age drama released on June 20. The film recently triggered a row during the success meet event conducted on Monday. A journalist questioned the makers about the depiction of a Brahmin character as a rapist in the film, in a particular assault scene that takes place in Varanasi. Clips from the event quickly went viral putting the film under the scanner.  

8 Vasantalu’s director Phanindra Narsetti took to his social media page and offered a clarification. He wrote, “There were illegal slaughterhouses in Varanasi prior to 2017. Which were later converted to Public Health Centres once Mr. Yogi Adityanath became UP's CM. They shut them down to prevent trafficking and protect cows, which is what I explored in the Varanasi fight, The trafficking thing.” 

The director further added, “We did our research prior to committing to the scene and didn't invent something out of thin air for the film. We respect every religion, and the characters are only there to prove human nature and nothing else. Please share this message, along with this link to as many people as you can before this turns out into mindless propaganda and controversy that will hurt many people and the film as well. Thank you.”

8 Vasantalu is a drama exploring a writer and martial artist Shuddi Ayodhya’s life of eight years as she finds love in life. The film released on June 20 clashing with Sekhar Kammula’s Kuberaa and received mixed response at the box office. In fact, the director did not attend the film’s success meet held on Monday.

8 Vasantalu marked a return for Phanindra, known for his previous independent films Backspace (2012), Madhuram (2014), and the crowd-funded Manu (2018). The film’s cinematography is by Vishwanath Reddy, while music is composed by Hesham Abdul Wahab.