News Tamil Nadu

When Suhasini Maniratnam Revealed How Her Uncle Kamal Haasan Used To Drop Her In College Without Wearing Pants

November 5, 2023
The Commune

Even as Kamal Haasan faces allegations of kissing an underage actress without her consent, another episode has come to light in which he made women of his own family uncomfortable with his antics.

These instances of Kamal’s misdemeanors come in light of the host of Bigg Boss and part-time politician, issuing a red card to expel actor Pradeep Antony from the Bigg Boss house, citing “women’s safety”.

During the episode that aired on 4 November 2023, Kamal Haasan greeted the contestants, many of whom displayed their stance against Pradeep by wearing red cloth on their hands. This symbolic protest was initiated by Kamal Haasan during the season’s premiere, where he distributed the red cloth to all contestants, encouraging them to use it as a means to stand against injustice.

The episode took a significant turn as Pradeep Antony, one of the season’s most influential contestants, was issued a red card due to concerns raised by the majority of contestants regarding “women’s safety” in his presence. Pradeep had garnered considerable attention for his unapologetic behavior and unique game strategy.

Numerous contestants, including Jovika, Maya, Poornima, Nixen, Raveena, Vishnu, Cool Suresh, Annabarathi, and Saravana Vickram, voiced their grievances against Pradeep. They cited instances of his making insensitive remarks about women and intimidating fellow contestants, thus creating an uncomfortable atmosphere in the house. Despite repeated objections to his behavior, Pradeep displayed a lack of remorse.

Pradeep was given an opportunity to present his perspective, during which he claimed that others in the house had engaged in similar behavior and used offensive language. He expressed his commitment to protect all the contestants as an artist but not as a competitor. During his explanation, Manichandra interjected, revealing that Pradeep had used the restroom without locking the door in the presence of women. When he was asked to lock the door for the safety of women, he responded inadequately. Pradeep admitted to having acted intentionally in this manner, but Kamal Haasan abruptly halted him from providing further details, thus preventing him from fully presenting his side of the story.

Kamal Haasan then conducted individual interviews with all the contestants to gauge their opinion on whether Pradeep should be issued a red card or allowed to continue in the game. The majority of participants supported the decision to give him a red card.

In the confession room, Kamal Haasan explained the decision to Pradeep, emphasizing that it was not a personal choice but the result of a democratic process. He stressed that the safety of women was his top priority and that he had consulted the show’s organizers. Kamal Haasan made a surprising revelation by stating that he would have left the show if Pradeep had been allowed to continue.

He said, “My opinions on this issue, you would’ve understood a little by now. But basing it only on my opinion.. just because I hold the card, I can’t use it to express my anger or take a side and take a decision. I’ve gone through a democratic process. The majority of them don’t want you to stay in this house. Importantly, women don’t feel safe. So, instead of going there again and engaging in a war of words, you can leave from here. Your suitcase will reach you.” Pradeep Anthony gracefully accepted the decision and left.

In light of this, many netizens lashed out at Kamal Haasan for shunting out Pradeep from the house undemocratically. Kamal’s past deeds as an actor has come back to haunt him with netizens questioning his virtue-signalling on “women safety”.

It is worth noting that Kamal Haasan was once accused of kissing an underage actress on screen without her consent. The alleged incident occurred during the shooting of the movie Punnagai Mannan, during which he kissed Rekha, a 16-year-old actress who had just completed 10th grade back then.

In an interview with a YouTube channel, actress Rekha said, “I had no idea about the kissing scene. I was only 16 at the time. Neither Kamal nor Director Balachander informed me that there would be a kissing scene. I felt horrible after filming the kissing scene.”

Now another anecdote by former actress and filmmaker Suhasini Maniratnam who is also the niece of Kamal Haasan has surfaced in which she notes how her uncle Kamal used to drop her at college without wearing pants.

In part/episode 13 of Zee Tamil’s show titled “Weekend With Stars” that was aired in 2018, Suhasini Maniratnam shares about her early life and her relationship with Kamal Haasan.

Sharing her experience with anchor Archana Chadhoke, Suhasini says “Sometimes, shooting happens opposite to our college. The shooting of Ilamai Oonjal Aadugiradhu was going on. Till then, I had kept it as a secret and nobody knew the fact that Kamal is my chitthapa (uncle). The song ‘Nee Kettal Naan Maatenendra Solven Kanna’ where Kamal will be smoking and Sripriya takes it off, that scene was being shot there. Everybody were going crazy saying ‘Kamal Haasan has come, Kamal Haasan has come, We’ve to go and see’ and I told them ‘I won’t come, I won’t come’ but they took me anyway. After going there, I was standing somewhere hidden at the back and then Kamal shouts ‘Aye!’ and calls me by a name. Shall I tell that name? ‘Chu Chu, come here’, he said. I was so embarrased”

She jovially says “I’ve a beautiful name Suhasini and he called me Chu Chu! Yea that’s my name. He called me that and people beside me started asking ‘Why is Kamal calling you with a weird name?’ to which Kamal said ‘You don’t know? She’s my daughter. My brother’s daughter’. That’s it. I got jittered. After that I became quite popular in college.”

She further goes on to say “Then, sometimes Kamal used to drop me at college. In those times, I don’t know whether you remember. There used to be a dress for karate. He won’t be wearing anything under. He used to be doing karate at home. Down, only his underpants will be there. He used to say that he has bought a new car and will drop me at college in that. I used to beg him saying ‘Please wear pants and come. Or atleast wear shorts and come.’ to which he would say ‘Chee chee, I won’t get out of the car. I’m a big star. And that too will I step outside ladies college?’. But then correctly he will come, he will get down and open the door for me. That’s it! The entire Queen Mary’s will be watching Kamal Haasan and his legs would.. Ayyo! I would be so ashamed! I used to yell ‘why are you doing like that?’. But he is like that only. Always doing galatta.”

A clipping of the above video is now going viral on social media with netizens condemning Kamal’s hypocrisy.

Subscribe to our channels on Telegram and WhatsApp and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.