Samyuktha, whose Telugu film 'Virupaksha' will hit theatres in Malayalam on May 5, said she felt saddened by Shine Tom Chacko’s barbs about her caste surname. The actress said it was sad to see Shine club her progressive decision with some other incident and speak mockingly about her.
“It was my decision to remove my caste surname. Even now I feel disgusted when I am called along with that surname. There are two reasons why I felt sad by his words—firstly I made a progressive decision by removing my caste surname. Not that things will change just because I said that. I am still called by this surname when I visit other places. Even when I went to Chennai for film promotions, they kept calling me by my caste surname and I found it vulgar,” she said.
The actress added that many people have asked her why she took such a decision. “Probably what I said must be a novel thing for many people. But then there are so many people who have taken a similar decision in society. Kerala, as a society, is very progressive. That’s why I decided to remove my surname. So, it was painful when I was questioned about that decision. Also, what I said in Chennai was totally different. So, it was painful to hear Shine club my decision with something totally unrelated to that,,” she said.
A few months ago, Shine had accused Samyuktha of failing to turn up for promotions of small films. He had criticised the actress when he was asked about her decision to remove her caste surname, during the promotions of 'Boomerang'. “If you are a Menon, Nair, Christian, or Muslim, you should do your work properly,” he had said, criticising the actress for skipping the promotions of the film.
