Actor Vinu Chakravarthy opposes The Dirty Picture

Veteran character artiste Vinu Chakravaraty has objected to the reported filming of the late South Indian sex siren ‘Silk’ Smitha’s life. The film has been named ‘The Dirty Picture’ and stars Vidya Balan in the central role. Observers were shocked to know that Vidya, known less for her glam factor and more for her penchant for performance oriented roles, was roped into play Smitha’s role.

‘Silk’ Smitha, introduced in the Tamil flick ‘Vandichakkaram’ at the behest of Vinu Chakravary, went on to make an indelible mark in the annals of Tamil film history. Not only did she star opposite all the top stars of her time – Kamal Haasan, Rajnikanth, Vijaykanth, Vijayakumar, late Jaishankar, actor-director Bhagyaraj to name a few – she also managed to stay on top as an ‘item girl’ for close to fifteen years.

Smitha’s suicide in the mid-nineties left the entire Kollywood shocked, to put it mildly. The actress, found hanging from the ceiling fan of her Chennai house, had everything an actress could ask for: name, fame, popularity, money, friends….too much of everything in too short a period of time. None of the Kollywood filmmakers have so far thought of making a biography on ‘Silk’ Smitha.

“It was me who introduced ‘Silk’ in Tamil films against all odds and opposition from many leading actresses. Nobody knows about the girl as well as I do. That being the case, how can any Kollywood or Bollywood director attempt to film Smitha’s story without seeking ‘permission’ from me or without even discussing her life with me? I’ll surely oppose the film as and when it gets ready for its theatrical release,”thunders Vinu.