Koratala Siva denies plagiarism accusations

Director Koratala Siva has denied that the plot of his superhit film Srimanthudu was lifted from Sarath Chandra’s novel Chachentha Prema.

Sarath Chandra had complained to the Telugu Film Writers Association about plagiarism and has also approached a Civil Court.

“I am a writer and I always respect other writers,” says Siva, adding that he can’t comment on this issue as it is in court.

“The case is in the court and I can’t speak anything about it now. My film has already released and his novel is also there in the market. With huge regards towards the writer and with respect to the legal system, let the court decide,” he says.

Though the writer has said that he got a favourable decision from the Writers Association, a source says that the matter is still in the discussion stage.

When contacted, committee member Paruchuri Gopala-krishna, too, said he couldn’t speak about it.

“The issue is sub judice as the writer approached the courts. So I can’t tell anything about it as it will be contempt of court. If the court asks us about it we will give our opinion,” says Paruchuri.

According to a source, while Srimanthudu deals more with adopting a village, Sarath Chandra’s novel does not mention the word “adopt”.

Mahesh Babu to shoot in North

Actor Mahesh Babu-starrer Brahmotsavam is going places. After hectic schedules in Hyderabad and Kodaikanal, the unit is now moving to North India as they are planning to shoot in Varanasi, Haridwar and Udaipur.

“According to the demands of the plot they will be shooting at all three places in the coming days. With these schedules, the shooting will be almost complete,” says a source from the unit.

The schedule will start from March 1. Directed by Srikanth Addala, the film has three female leads —Samantha, Kajal Aggarwal and Pranitha. It is set to release in April.