A promotional press conference for the Kannada film “KoraGajja” was scheduled to be held on January 24th at 8 pm in the Grand Ballroom of the Holiday Inn Hotel in Kochi, followed by a grand dinner. However, it is alleged that a press conference for a Malayalam film starring Mammootty was suddenly announced at the same time, disrupting the “KoraGajja” event.
Invitations for the press meet for “KoraGajja” were sent to all media houses in Kochi through the PRO about a week in advance. Internationally renowned actor Kabir Bedi and veteran actress Bhavya, who has appeared in nearly 100 leading roles in South Indian cinema, flew to Kochi specifically for the press meet.
But just a day before the press meet, Mammootty’s team scheduled a press conference for their film “Chathapacha” at the same time. It is alleged that this was done knowing that media representatives would prioritize Mammootty’s performance over “KoraGajja.” Consequently, the “KoraGajja” press meet had to be canceled, which Kabir Bedi and the entire team called insulting.
The film’s director, Sudheer Attavar, and producer, Trivikram Sapalya, expressed their displeasure, saying the behavior was unacceptable and questioned the image of the Malayalam film industry. They also said that international actor Kabir Bedi, who had come to Kochi specifically for the press conference, was hurt by the sudden turn of events.
The PR team for “KoraGajja” received a call in the middle of the night informing them that Mammootty’s Malayalam film team wanted the promotional event for “KoraGajja” canceled or postponed. The team was shocked, as lakhs of rupees had already been spent on the event. The team was told that Mammootty’s team had scheduled their own press conference at the same time, making it impossible for journalists to attend.
With Kabir Bedi and other actors already in Kochi, and lakhs of rupees spent on hotels, lavish dinners, and accommodations, cancelling the event would have been a huge loss. Despite this, the team felt helpless, as Mammootty’s influence is considered immense.
Kochi isn’t a large city like Mumbai, Bengaluru, or Hyderabad, where every media house has a dedicated film journalist. In smaller cities, a single journalist typically handles both the film and sports beats. Therefore, it’s common practice to avoid two major film events at the same time, and PROs work in coordination.
The “KoraGajja” team says that Mammootty’s team, ignoring this common industry practice, scheduled their own event at the same time, forcing the cancellation of their press meet. The team finds it hard to believe that Padma Bhushan award-winning actor Mammootty would behave this way and ignore others’ promotions.
Mammootty is a senior actor, and it’s well known that his events attract a large media presence. Therefore, it was expected that his team would have coordinated with the media or PRO before any confrontation. Director Sudheer Attavar questioned why the press meet for “KoraGajja” was disrupted, especially since the film involves several Malayalam technicians and singers.
Attavar also said that Malayalam films receive extensive promotion in Bengaluru and are fully supported by the Kannada media. Given that millions of Kannada viewers watch Malayalam films, this incident could also spark language-based tensions.
Kabir Bedi said, “I am a fan of Malayalam films, and the language has won nearly 25% of India’s National Awards. I came to Kochi to promote ‘KoraGajja’ out of respect for Malayalam cinema. This incident is extremely unfortunate.” He added, “Mammootty may not be aware of this, but disrupting a press meet scheduled a day earlier like this is not right. There should have been coordination with the media or PRO.”
The incident is being described as an insult to internationally renowned actor Kabir Bedi, who was specially present for the press meet. The “KoraGajja” team says Mammootty’s team had no right to interfere with the event, especially since invitations were already sent out a week in advance.
Senior actress Bhavya also expressed her displeasure, saying that such disrespect to a respected and internationally renowned artist like Kabir Bedi is unacceptable.
Producer Trivikram Sapalya said,
“We held promotional events across the country, and over 100 journalists were present at the audio launch in Mangaluru. We received overwhelming support everywhere, except for this unfortunate incident in Kochi,” he said, adding that the rescheduled press meet for 5 pm with limited media presence hampered the film’s promotion.
Many people have condemned the incident, calling it unfortunate and saying that internationally renowned actor Kabir Bedi was insulted by the team of Mammootty’s recent Malayalam film.
