Prakash Raj slams ‘hate mongering monsters’ questioning why he held Christian funeral for mother if he's an atheist

Actor Prakash Raj's mother Suvarnalatha recently died at the age of 86 from age-related issues. Here's how he responded to a troll questioning her funeral.

Actor Prakash Raj’s mother, Suvarnalatha, died at the age of 86 recently due to age-related health issues. He held a Christian funeral on Tuesday for her in Bengaluru, according to her beliefs. When a troll questioned him for holding a religious funeral for his mother despite being an atheist, he slammed back.

Prakash Raj held a Christian funeral for mother Suvarnalatha according to her belief.

Prakash Raj slams troll questioning mother’s funeral

A troll posted a video of a 2025 interview with Prakash on The Lallantop, interspersing it with footage from his mother’s funeral at St. Michael's Church in Bengaluru. The video sees Prakash saying, “I don’t believe in god. I have no time. Kisine poocha mujhe, mujhe time nai hai bola maine (Someone asked me and I said I don’t have the time). Kyunki bhagwan hai (If god exists), to believe, belief is enough. To say no, I need a lot of knowledge, I don’t have time. I live in this world, I only live about human beings, my fellow human beings.”

Posting it, the X (formerly Twitter) user wrote, “Prakash Raj Calls himself an atheist & says he doesn't believe in God. Yet performs his mother's last rites following Christian traditions.” Responding to him, the actor wrote, “Yes. I don’t believe in god..but my mother believed in her god. Who am i to deny her..the right to be buried according to her belief. This is the basic respect we give one another. Will you Hate mongering monsters understand this #justasking.”

In the interview, Prakash was asked if he has a belief system, given that his mother follows Christianity and his wife, choreographer Pony Verma, follows Hinduism. He stated that while he doesn’t believe in god, he doesn’t have the right to ask his wife or mother not to. The actor also stated that he sits with his wife for homam (havan) and goes to church with his mother if she asks him to. Prakash also stated that he doesn’t talk about it as long as they’re not causing harm to anybody.

Prakash Raj on his mother’s death

On Tuesday, Prakash posted an old picture of his mother, Suvarnalatha, on his X account. Posting it, he wrote, “Thank you each n everyone for your kindness and thoughtful words . It meant a lot to me and my family in these moments of grief. Thank you Amma for everything.. love you .. will miss you.” The actor had previously spoken about his mother’s medical struggles, including a brain cyst that required surgery and resulted in memory loss.

Prakash was last seen in the Hindi romantic drama Tere Ishk Mein with Dhanush and Kriti Sanon. He will soon star in H Vinoth and Vijay’s Jana Nayagan. He also has films like G2, Dacoit, and Varanasi lined up.