Actress Varalaxmi Sarathkumar has landed in controversy after Police Complaint director Sanjeev Megoti made a series of explosive allegations against her during the film’s promotional event in Hyderabad on Wednesday.
Police Complaint, starring Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, Naveen Chandra, Krishna Sai, Ragini Dwivedi, and Aditya Om, is scheduled for a worldwide release on June 12. However, the actress was absent from the film’s media interaction which prompted the director to openly express his frustration.
According to Sanjeev, Varalaxmi completed dubbing only for the first half of the film and did not return to finish the remaining portions.
“After dubbing for the first half, she didn’t come back for the second half. She made us cry, and we suffered a lot. She told us to get it done by someone else,” he alleged.
The director claimed he repeatedly requested her to participate in the film’s promotions but was unsuccessful.
“We paid her Rs. 75 lakhs as remuneration. Her daily staff expenses were another Rs. 50,000. Overall, we spent close to Rs. 1 crore. As part of the agreement, she signed a commitment to attend five press meets, and each press meet was supposed to take only about 40 minutes. Even after that, she is not supporting the film’s promotions,” he alleged.
“Despite being in the industry for so long, I had to beg her to come. But she said she was busy,” he said.
Drawing comparisons, he pointed out that even top-tier stars like Ram Charan actively promoted Peddi, while veteran filmmaker Singeetam Srinivasa Rao continues to promote Sing Geetham even at the age of 94.
He also took aim at what he described as the industry’s double standards.
“For payments, managers call producers without fail and collect every rupee. But when it comes to promotions, they don’t respond,” he said.
He also questioned actors who skip media interactions despite being paid substantial amounts.
“Lakhs are taken as remuneration, but won’t they come even for a press meet? Some people charge Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 40,000 just to attend promotional events,” he remarked.
According to Sanjeev, promotions are especially important for smaller films that do not have the hype associated with star-hero projects.
He also made a shocking claim that a major Telugu producer who had cast Varalaxmi in a Prabhas film reportedly removed her after shooting with her for around 15 days because of her unprofessionalism.
The director’s comments are now going viral and triggering discussions on social media.
So far, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar has not responded to the allegations.
Controversy: @varusarath5
“డబ్బులు తీసుకుని ప్రమోషన్కి ఎందుకు రారు? అడుక్కున్నా ఆమెని రమ్మని!
“#RamCharan #Peddi ప్రమోట్ చేశాడు… 94 ఏళ్ల వయసులో కూడా #SingGeetham కి వచ్చారు.”
“లక్షలు తీసుకుని… ప్రెస్ మీట్కే రారా?”
కొందరు ₹30–40 వేల వరకు తీసుకుంటారు.” pic.twitter.com/dojDfM0F7s
— M9 NEWS (@M9News_) June 10, 2026
#Prabhas తో సినిమా చేసిన ఓ పెద్ద నిర్మాత కూడా @varusarath5 తో 15 రోజులు షూటింగ్ చేసి పక్కన పడేశారు.
ఆమె ప్రెస్ మీట్స్కి రావట్లేదని చిన్న డైరెక్టర్ బాధ. pic.twitter.com/iO6wDgvfjs
— M9 NEWS (@M9News_) June 10, 2026
Controversy / Agreement:
₹75 లక్షలు @varusarath5 remuneration, డైలీ స్టాఫ్కి మరో ₹50 వేల వరకు… మొత్తం దాదాపు కోటి రూపాయలు ఇచ్చాం.
ప్రమోషన్స్లో భాగంగా 5 ప్రెస్ మీట్స్కి వస్తానని, ఒక్కో ప్రెస్ మీట్ 40 నిమిషాలే అని సైన్ చేసింది.
Actress non-cooperation hits media. pic.twitter.com/4SoiR1lTCN
— M9 NEWS (@M9News_) June 10, 2026
Promotions: Sad Reality !
ప్రెస్ మీట్కి Saree కట్టుకుని వచ్చిన దానికి కూడా బిల్లు నిర్మాతలకే వేస్తున్నారు.
అక్కడదాకా ఎందుకండి?
మేకప్ వేసుకు వచ్చి కెమెరాల ముందు ఫోటోలు దిగినందుకు ఆ మేకప్ బిల్లు కూడా ప్రొడ్యూసర్లకే వేస్తున్నారు కదా! #GlamBiz pic.twitter.com/8MUhLAVgOO
— M9 NEWS (@M9News_) June 10, 2026
