Sanal Kumar Sasidharan arrested after Manju Warrier files complaint against director

Director Sanal Kumar Sasidharan has been taken into police custody from his house in Neyyattinkara.  The action was taken following Manju Warrier’s complaint that he had stalked and threatened her on social media. “They are going to grab my mobile phone. I am being kidnapped by several people. They are attacking me. Some goons claiming to be police are taking me away. They are trying to kidnap me. Somebody please interfere”, he said on a Facebook live. Sanal Kumar Sasidharan, who has delivered several critically acclaimed movies in Malayalam, has also worked with Manju Warrier for the film ‘Kayattam’. The filmmaker has been making several serious allegations on social media claiming that Manju Warrier’s life is in danger.

Earlier this week, Sanal Kumar Sasidharan put a post on his social media that read, “Very Serious: Actress’s life is in danger. It has been four days since I posted on social media that the life of famous Malayalam actress Manju Warrier is in danger and she is in the custody of some people with vested interests. I posted the names of her managers Bineesh Chandran and Binu Nair and the reasons why I believe she is in detention. But so far neither Manju Warrier nor anyone else concerned has responded. Manju Warrier's silence reinforces my suspicion. Yesterday I sent an email to @wcc_cinema wcc, organisation working for gender equality in Malayalam cinema. They, too, remain silent on the matter. When I say this on social media today, many people try to see this very serious issue as a joke. It is frightening that the mainstream media in Kerala is trying to pretend that it has not seen this issue. Since the issue I have raised is about the life and liberty of a nationally acclaimed film actress, I would like the national media to take this issue seriously (sic).”