New Delhi: Rashmika Mandanna’s team has vehemently denied recent allegations that the actress neglected her Kannada roots and refused an invitation to the Bengaluru Film Festival. These allegations, made by Congress MLA Ravikumar Gowda Ganiga and a Kannada activist, claimed Mandanna identified herself as a Hyderabadi and showed disrespect for her Kannada heritage.
The actress’s team has released a statement strongly refuting these claims as entirely false and baseless.
A source close to Mandanna was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times that, “This bears reference to certain news reports alleging that Rashmika refused to attend the Bengaluru film festival and made derogatory statements about it and the state. The said news reports are completely false and do not have any element of truth.”
MLA Ravi Kumar Gowda Ganiga, also known as Ravi Ganiga, ignited the controversy, highlighting Mandanna’s origins in Kodagu, Karnataka, and expressing his disappointment at her purported self-identification as a Hyderabadi.
Ganiga publicly stated that Mandanna, who launched her career with the Kannada film Kirik Party, had previously indicated she resided in Hyderabad and, on a separate occasion, allegedly claimed ignorance of Karnataka’s location, declining a festival invitation due to a lack of time. He questioned whether she should be “taught a lesson” for this perceived slight.
“One of our MLAs went to her house and invited her several times but she spoke so rude about Kannada despite growing from Kannada land. Shouldn’t she be taught a lesson or not?” Ganiga asked.
Ganiga didn’t stop there. He threatened to request the withdrawal of government subsidies to the Kannada film industry, expressing broader dissatisfaction with the film fraternity’s apparent poor attendance at the Bengaluru Film Festival.
This sentiment was echoed by Karnataka Rakshana Vedike convener T A Narayana Gowda, who criticised Mandanna for portraying herself as Telugu and a daughter of Andhra Pradesh, despite her Kodagu origins. Gowda used the historical figure of Meer Sadiq, a courtier who betrayed Tipu Sultan, to emphasise Mandanna’s perceived betrayal of her Kannada roots. He stressed that regardless of future success, Mandanna owed a debt of gratitude to the land that launched her career.
“You bloomed here. If you forget Kannada state soon after getting opportunities in different language films we think what kind of ‘Meer Sadiq’ you are,” Gowda told reporters.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar had already expressed his dissatisfaction with the film industry’s turnout at the festival, issuing a warning about potential repercussions for lack of cooperation with the government.
