Ram Gopal Varma slams boycott of Kamal Haasan’s Thug Life, deletes tweet calling threats 'new hooliganism'

Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma briefly voiced support for actor Kamal Haasan amid growing backlash and boycott calls against Haasan’s upcoming film 'Thug Life' in Karnataka. Varma, who criticised the threats to ban the film, later deleted his post from social media.

In a now-deleted post on X (formerly Twitter), Varma wrote, “DEMOCRACY’s new name is INTOLERANCE.., irrespective of factual correctness, threats to ban 'Thug Life' in Karnataka unless Kamal Haasan apologises, amounts to a new kind of HOOLIGANISM.”

How the controversy started

The controversy began after Kamal Haasan made a statement during a promotional event, saying, “Kannada was born out of Tamil.”

His comments triggered strong reactions from pro-Kannada groups, who called for a ban on *Thug Life* in the state. Effigies of the actor were burnt in protest, and the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce has since stalled the film’s release.

In response, Haasan approached the Karnataka High Court, seeking permission to release the film. He stood by his statement, refusing to apologise. In a post on X, Haasan said, “Love will never apologise. I will apologise only if I am wrong. If I am not, I will not.”

In another interview with PTI, the actor also said, "So lets leave all this very in-depth discussions to historians, archaeologists and language experts. If you look at it from the northern point of view, according to them it is right, if you look at it from Thenkumari (south), then what I say is right. There is a third angle to it-- the scholars, the language experts. This is not an answer, an explanation. Love will never apologise."

About Thug Life

'Thug Life' marks Kamal Haasan’s reunion with director Mani Ratnam after 38 years. The film features a star-studded cast including Silambarasan, Trisha Krishnan, Joju George, Pankaj Tripathi, and others. It is scheduled for a worldwide release on June 5.

The film is jointly produced by Raaj Kamal Films International, Madras Talkies, and Red Giant Movies. The outcome of the court case will decide its fate in Karnataka.