Malayalam movie director Sreekumar Menon was arrested late Thursday night time by the Alappuzha South police on costs of dishonest and is in custody, a high officer confirmed.
Around three months in the past, company agency Sreevalsam Group had gone to courtroom towards Menon accusing him of pocketing Rs 7 crore on the pretext of manufacturing a movie and failing to fulfill the promise, Alappuzha DySP Prithewiraj DK mentioned. A case was filed towards the director below Section 420 of the IPC on the Alappuzha South police station in reference to the litigation.
As the investigation progressed, Menon approached the Alappuzha district courtroom for an anticipatory bail fearing arrest. However, the courtroom dismissed his petition. Subsequently, the police arrested him from his Palakkad residence late Thursday night time, taking him into custody. He will likely be produced earlier than a Justice of the Peace in Alappuzha Friday.
Menon, a veteran of advert movies, had made his debut within the Malayalam movie business by means of ‘Odiyan’ starring Mohanlal in 2018. The movie obtained combined critiques from critics however went on to turn into a business blockbuster on the field workplace.
He was briefly arrested in 2019 after actress Manju Warrier filed a case towards him, accusing him of defaming her on social media platforms.
Menon had additionally attracted controversy over an unfulfilled movie undertaking based mostly on the novel ‘Randamoozham’ written by MT Vasudevan Nair, and touted as the most costly Malayalam film ever made. The novel was a retelling of the Mahabharata epic from the standpoint of the character Bhim. When the movie didn’t materialise even after three years of buying the script from MT, the veteran author moved courtroom towards Menon. Last yr, the Supreme Court authorised a settlement between the duo as per which Menon will return the script to MT and the latter returning the cash he obtained as advance from the director.