Mollywood’s latest box office hit, Thudarum, starring Mohanlal, has found itself in the middle of a controversy that has set social media buzzing. The film, which recently cemented its status as the third-highest-grossing Malayalam film ever, is now being questioned for authenticity as filmmaker, Sanal Kumar Sasidharan called it out for plagiarising the plot of one of his shelved projects.
Sanal accuses Thudarum of script theft, plans to release the original screenplay
While Mohanlal-starrer Thudarum broke box office records and became one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films on a global scale, it came as a shock when poet and filmmaker, Sanal Kumar Sasidharan slammed the makers for stealing his content. Taking to Facebook, Sanal shared a strongly worded post claiming that Thudarum, directed by Tharun Moorthy and starring Mohanlal and Shobana, borrowed the ‘skeleton’ of his 2020 script, Theeyattam. The filmmaker wrote:
“I saw the movie Thudarum. It’s made by stealing the skeleton of my screenplay, Theeyattam, which I wrote in 2020. The core of it, however, remains safe; either because they (the makers of the Mohanlal-starrer) lacked the intelligence to understand its essence, or because they deliberately avoided it in their attempt to rewrite it unrecognisably.”
Sanal highlights similarities, alleges that the plot, the protagonist and even the dialogue were copied from his script
In his post, the filmmaker detailed how the key plot of Thudarum overlaps with his script. Sanal’s original script focused on ‘Ambi’, an auto-rickshaw driver falsely implicated in a murder case after a severed head is found in his vehicle, eerily similar to Mohanlal’s role as a cab driver entangled in a murder mystery in Thudarum. He further claimed that a distinctive Malayalam proverb from his script, ‘Konnaal paapam thinnaal theerum’, was unnecessarily inserted into Thudarum, calling it a clear sign of plagiarism.
“My story is about an auto-rickshaw driver named Ambi who is framed by the police after someone is murdered inside his vehicle, and their severed head is left in it. A crucial dialogue from my screenplay, ‘Konnaal paapam thinnaal theerum’ (a proverb meaning, ‘the sin of killing is absolved on eating’) is used in this film despite being completely unnecessary. Even expert thieves, skilled at stealing without leaving a trace, can forget themselves due to certain whims. I felt the use of this dialogue was one such slip-up.”
Sanal alleged that while the structure was lifted from his script, the film missed the emotional depth of his original story. To support his claim, the filmmaker announced he would soon release the full script of Theeyattam on social media, allowing the public to judge the similarities. He wrote:
“All of them have read the screenplay. Since five years is a long period, it’s possible that they may have forgotten about it. I will be publishing my screenplay here soon.”
About Thaduram
Thaduram hit the theatres on April 28, 2025, and emerged as one of Mollywood’s biggest blockbusters of 2025, bagging more than Rs. 230 crore globally. The Mohanlal-starrer now stands as the third-highest-grossing Malayalam film ever. It is currently streaming on JioHotstar following its theatrical run. As of now, the makers of Thudarum, including director Tharun Moorthy and screenwriter KR Sunil, have not issued any official statement addressing these allegations.
What are your thoughts on Sanal’s plagiarism allegations against Thudarum’s makers? Let us know!
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