Director Trinadha Rao Nakkina made a sexist remark about actress Anshu’s ‘size’ at the teaser launch event of the upcoming Telugu film Mazaka in Hyderabad on Sunday, which received backlash from the audience and led to strong criticism on social media. Now, the director has apologised for his remark, explaining that it was made in ‘jest’ with the intention of ‘hoping to make everyone laugh’.
Actor Sundeep Kishan took to X and shared a video of the director. In the video, he was heard saying, “I came to know that several women were uncomfortable with my statements made during the teaser launch of Mazaka. I call it unfortunate, as they were not planned.”
He added, “I made those comments in jest, hoping to make everyone laugh. However, if these remarks have hurt you, this is my mistake. I would like to issue a heartfelt apology, as they were objectionable. I will also personally apologise to Anshu. I didn’t realise this would become such a significant issue.”
Check out the video:
Yesterday was an unfortunate slip of the tongue by Dir #NakkinaTrinadhRao
It’s a wrong example to set & we should have been cautious to avoid it
Trinadh garu & Team #Mazaka apologise for the poor choice of words to Anshu garu & to all Women out there,
We are because of you ♥️ pic.twitter.com/KQvLSeBtJ1— Sundeep Kishan (@sundeepkishan) January 13, 2025
After the major backlash, Anshu praised Director Trinadha Rao Nakkina despite his sexist remark. She said, “He’s an absolute pleasure to work with and the loveliest man on the planet.”
Setting the record straight! @AnshuActress thanks @TrinadharaoNak1 Garu for his love, respect & guidance during #Mazaka. "He's an absolute pleasure to work with and a loveliest man on the planet."
Clearing all rumors, Actress Anshu praises director's kindness & professionalism!… pic.twitter.com/Iz4bxWEwLA
— Telugu Film PROs Association (@YourTFPA) January 13, 2025
Here’s what Trinadha said about Anshu
Trinadha was heard praising Anshu on stage, later, he said, “How does this girl look like this, I used to wonder. If you don’t know what she looked like, watch the movie (Manmadhudu, Anshu’s 2002 film with Nagarjuna).”
“Does she still look like that? She’s thinner now, I asked her to eat and put on weight because it’s not enough for Telugu (cinema), size needs to be bigger. She has improved now. She will improve further,” he added.
Terrible, terrible comment by director Trinadha Rao about his heroine.
The audacity to even say such things and get away ♂️♂️
— Haricharan Pudipeddi (@pudiharicharan) January 12, 2025
However, this is not the first time Trinadha Rao Nakkina has faced criticism for his inappropriate behavior. In 2024, Trinadha made actor Payal Radhakrishna uncomfortable on stage for not hugging him. He kept asking her multiple times to hug her, despite her non-verbal cues indicating that she did not want to.
