Actor Joju George Photo courtesy: Ravichandran N.

Malayalam actor Joju George’s alleged phone call to a man who criticized his latest film, Water, A few weeks ago he got into a controversy. Joju had criticized Adarsh ​​HS, a research scholar, for posting a review on Facebook which prominently condemned the depiction of a rape scene in the film. Joju says that he regrets the entire incident.

He says, “I wish that incident had never happened in my life.” Adarsh ​​had said that the rape scene “insults the female character.” He wrote, “When rape is depicted in a film, the viewer must be able to sympathize with the victim.” His review became controversial when he accused the actor of threatening him while posting his conversation with JoJu online.

“I didn’t question anyone’s opinion,” says Joju. “I felt that people were forced to give a negative comment on various platforms, and I reacted to it.” The National Award-winning actor said he has full respect for film critics.

“It is their right to talk about films. It’s about how they watch a film and what they learn from it. I can make a film only to the best of my ability. I can’t demand anyone else to watch the film the way I want,” he says.

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Water Joju’s directorial debut. Touted as an action-packed revenge drama, the film stars Joju, Abhinay, Sagar Surya and VP Juneaz in lead roles. After a successful performance in Malayalam, the film will release in Kannada, Tamil and Telugu on November 29, 2024.

The film faced criticism for a sexual assault scene, with the makers being questioned by a section of the audience for its “graphic” depiction of rape. Joju defended the scene, saying that there is no one way to portray a situation in films.

“Cinema is an individualistic expression. For example, if you look at a painting, it doesn’t have a single meaning. This is subjective and depends on the viewer. There is no right or wrong in art. An artist has the freedom to create his own art,” he argues.

Joju, who started his career as a junior artiste, has come a long way. Despite his vast experience, Water It was a challenging project for Joju. “After making the film, I was more scared than proud of it. As an actor, producer and director, the journey of making a film and taking it to the audience has been challenging. Now that the film has received a good response, I am more confident as a producer. It feels great to see that my decisions and beliefs are getting me rewards.

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The actor-filmmaker showed Water Kamal Haasan and was thrilled with the great actor’s reaction. Joju to share screen space with Kamal Haasan in Mani Ratnam’s upcoming film thug Life. “Kamal sir loved the film and praised my writing. He is one of my gurus. Great men like him have paved a path for us to follow. I have learned a lot from his films.”