Janhvi Kapoor and Sidharth Malhotra’s film, Param Sundari, has hit the theatres on August 29, 2025. While early reviews were in favour of the cross-cultural romance, as shown in Param Sundari, a huge section of people, mostly Malayalis, are in rage. The rom-com is set up in Kerala backdrops, the lively music and colourful portrayal makes us remember 2 States and Chennai Express. A video has been going viral, wherein a woman slams Janhvi role as ‘Sundari’.

Janhvi Kapoor gets slammed for her role as ‘Sundari’

With every film, Janhvi Kapoor strives to excel in her acting skills, and Param Sundari gave her the opportunity to showcase her talents, as it is rooted in her South Indian heritage. We stumbled upon a video on Reddit, wherein several Malayali content creators slammed the portrayal of South Indians. One woman questioned why the makers do not want to hire a Malayali actor in such films, as they are also extremely talented. 

The woman added that nowadays Malayalis do not talk in such an accent. In fact, the South Indian films also portrayed the Punjabi as ‘Balle Balle Balle’ but the world has changed. She further added that the Malayalis no longer wear Jasmine flowers in their hair and walk in the office and house.

Another girl in the video claimed that the portrayal of Kerala in the movie Param Sundari is outdated and disrespectful. The woman further claimed that ‘Sundari’ is no longer a girl’s name, but they are used for cows and cats. The woman was quoted as saying:

Do you know who is called ‘Sundari’ nowadays cows and cats. The pronounciation of everything in the movie is off. Nothing, you could have casted a Malayali actress or atleast dubb her.”

Another Malayali girl who lives in Mumbai and works as an actor, revealed that she often auditions for South Indian roles. During auditions, she is asked to add the accent which is too old, and nowadays no one talks in that way. She added that Johny Lever had portrayed the character of a South Indian coconut seller, and his accent was loved and it worked, but things have changed. 

Soon, netizens reacted on the video. One user wrote, “I agree with her. Movies from the south have never hired North Indian women…. Oh wait.” Another one penned, “What’s crazy is that Jahnvi Kapoor is essentially a South Indian, despite her surname, she is Sreedevi’s daughter.”  A third user commented, “But she does have south-Indian lineage, right? Her mom was born in TN, so probably not the worst choice? Now, acting prowess, I can’t argue because I haven’t seen her in anything other than her green tea ads and “Lyra, Lyra, everybody loves to wear…” (when PVR decides a 30+ year old man is the ideal demographic for it lol).”

More about the film, Param Sundari

In the film, Sidharth Malhotra plays the lead as ‘Param Sachdev’, a Delhi boy who travels to Kerala for business work and invests Rs. 5 crore in an AI-driven dating App. The app shows ‘Thekkepaattu Sundari Damodar Pillai’, played by Janhvi Kapoor. She is the owner of a picturesque farmhouse. The story revolves around the two of them and how they fell in love despite their different cultures.