Vetri Maaran: Suriya is one star who is redefining stardom

Suriya's Jai Bhim, which was released recently on Amazon Prime Video on November 2, is facing backlash from the Vanniyar community for allegedly portraying them in a bad light.

On Monday, the state president of Vanniyar Sangam had issued a legal notice to the actor and the film's director TJ Gnanavel, demanding Rs 5 crores compensation.

The legal notice claims that the antagonist of the film, a policeman, was deliberately portrayed as a person belonging to the Vanniyar community. The notice has also named Jyotika, the producer of the film, and a person from Amazon Prime Video. 

Following this, Suriya has been receiving support from his fans and several film personalities like Pa Ranjith, Venkat Prabhu, Lokesh Kanagaraj, and Prakash Raj. A hashtag #WeStandWithSuriya is trending on Twitter.

Filmmaker Vetri Maaran is the latest from the film industry to express his solidarity with Suriya. In his Twitter handle, the Asuran director has written that the efforts of TJ Gnanavel and Suriya towards social justice are inspiring. He also added that it is only natural for films like Jai Bhim to cause angst among those who don't want to change the status quo.