What began as a routine promotional interview for the upcoming Malayalam film ‘Athiradi’ has now exploded into a full-scale social media controversy, with film critic Baradwaj Rangan facing intense backlash over a shocking remark directed at actor Tovino Thomas.

The now-viral moment unfolded as Thomas spoke about how disturbing global events have affected him emotionally.

Reflecting on wars and the infamous Epstein files, the actor admitted he was deeply unsettled after reading about the case.

“I grew up believing the world was a beautiful place,” Thomas said during the conversation.

But the serious tone of the discussion took an unexpected turn when Rangan interrupted with a remark many online users are calling “tone-deaf” and “insensitive.”

“Why are you upset? Your name isn’t in the Epstein files, right?” Rangan asked. Thomas, visibly caught off guard, replied, “No.”

Actor-filmmaker Basil Joseph, who was also part of the interview, was seen laughing at the exchange, adding even more fuel to the online debate.

Within hours, clips from the interview spread rapidly across X and Instagram, triggering a wave of criticism against Rangan. Several users accused the veteran critic of trivialising a deeply disturbing issue for the sake of humour.

“This was not sarcasm. It was just insensitive,” one user wrote, while another called the moment “awkward, immature, and completely unnecessary.”

However, not everyone agreed with the outrage. A section of social media users defended Rangan, arguing that the comment was intended as a light joke and did not deserve such a massive backlash.

Amid the controversy, excitement around ‘Athiradi’ continues to build. Directed by debutant Arun Anirudhan, the film reunites the core team behind ‘Minnal Murali’ (2021).

Joseph plays the lead role of Sam Boy, while Thomas appears in a powerful villain avatar as Sreekuttan Vellayani. Vineeth Sreenivasan also features in a key role.

The film is set to hit theatres on May 14, but for now, it is the explosive interview controversy, not the movie, that has everyone talking.