Divorce was mutual, made in peace: Samantha, Naga Chaitanya respond to minister’s comment
Hyderabad: Actor Samantha Ruth Prabhu clarified on Wednesday that her divorce from Naga Chaitanya was amicable and by mutual consent. She expressed her frustration towards Telangana minister Konda Surekha, who linked the actor’s divorce to Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president K. T. Rama Rao.
Samantha took to her Instagram stories to address the minister's remarks, urging her to respect her personal journey and maintain the privacy of individuals.
In her statement posted on social media, Samantha highlighted her journey and fight in the glamorous industry. “To be a woman, To come out and work, To survive in a glamours industry where women are more often than not treated as props, To fall in love & to fall out of love, To still stand up and fight…,” reads her post.
“It takes a lot of courage and strength. Konda Surekha Garu, I am proud of what this journey turned me into -- please don’t trivialise it. I hope you realise that your words carry significant weight as a minister. I implore you to be responsible and respectful of individual’s privacy,” she wrote.
“My divorce is a personal matter, and I request that you refrain from speculating about it. Our choice to keep things private doesn’t invite misrepresentation. To clarify: my divorce was mutual consent and amicable, with no political conspiracy involved. Could you please keep me out of political battles? I have always remained non-political and wish to continue doing so,” the actress added.
Naga Chaitanya stated on X that the decision to divorce was one of the most painful choices he faced, but it was made mutually and respectfully due to differing life goals. He expressed frustration over the baseless rumors surrounding the situation and emphasized that Minister Konda Surekha's comments were false and unacceptable. He highlighted the importance of supporting and respecting women, condemning the exploitation of celebrities' personal lives for media attention.
Naga Chaitanya’s stepmother, Amala Akkineni, also criticised Konda Surekha’s comments. “Shocked to hear a woman minister turn into a demon, conjuring evil fiction allegations, preying on decent citizens as fuel for a political war. Madam Minister, do you rely on and believe people with no decency to feed you utterly scandalous stories about my husband without an iota of shame or truth? This is really shameful. If leaders lower themselves into the gutter and behave like criminals, what will happen to our country?” she asked on X.
She called on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to urge the minister to retract her statement. “Mr Rahul Gandhiji, if you believe in human decency, please restrain your politicians and make your minister retract her venomous statements with an apology to my family. Protect the citizens of this country,” she added.
Naga Chaitanya's father, Nagarjuna, had previously condemned the minister's remarks, advising her against using the lives of film stars, who generally stay away from politics, to attack her political rivals.
Agency