Filmmaker Bala, wife Muthumalar file for divorce after 18 years of marriage

Filmmaker Bala and his wife Muthumalar have parted ways after 18 years of marriage.

As per reports, Bala, who is known for helming Sethu (1999), Pithamagan (2003) and Avan Ivan (2011), and his wife filed for divorce by mutual consent in a family court in Chennai.

Neither Bala nor Muthumalar have released a statement to the media yet. However, leading Tamil daily Dina Thanthi has reported that they have been living separately for four years.

The former couple, which got married in Madurai in 2004, has a daughter.

Bala last directed the Tamil film Varmaa (2020), a remake of the Telugu film Arjun Reddy (2017). The film was supposed to mark the acting debut of actor Vikram’s son Dhruv Vikram. After shooting the project, Bala decided to bow out of the film following creative differences with the makers.

A statement was released by the makers of Varmaa, which read, “E4 Entertainment has engaged B Studios to recreate the Tamil version of Arjun Reddy titled as Varmaa, on a first copy basis, on the latter’s insistence. We at E4 Entertainment are not happy with the final version handed over to us and due to various creative and other differences, we have decided not to release this version (sic)."

In response to the controversy, Bala said in a statement that it was his decision to leave the project and denied allegations made by the producers. “I am forced to release this explanation, due to the false statement from the producer of Varmaa. In order to safeguard creative freedom, it was my own decision to relieve myself from the project. Considering Dhruv Vikram’s future, I would like to end this here.”

Bala is all set to begin work on his next project, which marks his reunion with actor Suriya after two decades. It is rumoured that Suriya will be seen playing a deaf and dumb character in the movie.