Varalaxmi Sarathkumar responds to writer Burra’s allegations

Writer Saimadhav Burra recently posted on social media alleging that actor-director Varalaxmi Sarathkumar had killed the soul of his script and completely altered what he had written for the film “Saraswathi,” which hit theaters on March 6.

“Saraswathi” marks the directorial debut of Varalaxmi Sarathkumar. She wrote the screenplay and directed the film based on a story line provided by Saimadhav Burra.

At a press meet today, Varalaxmi addressed the controversy and clarified her stance.

“I have respect for senior writer Saimadhav Burra. He works on big films. But I didn’t steal his script or deny him credit. We bought the story point from him, paid him, and credited him in the film. Regarding his allegation that we changed the story, we didn’t actually use his script. We only took one point and developed the story in our own way. He had written this story many years ago, and no one showed interest because the second half felt outdated,” she said.

She further added, “We understand how storytelling and screenplays have evolved with time. So we wrote the film in our own style using just that one point. Apart from sending a WhatsApp audio note explaining his idea, he did not work on the script.”

The film is currently running in theaters and has received mixed reactions.