Never in his wildest dreams had BSNL accounts officer Sasidharan thought an Onam release would fetch him so much trouble. When the director of Nadiya Kollappetta Ratri (The Night Nadiya was Killed) randomly selected a mobile number as part of his story line, he was quite unaware a real number (9447081881) existed. And that it belonged to Sasidharan.
The result: Sasidhahran has been bombarded with posers and at times, the choicest abuse. Most of the callers are under the impression that he is the villain, Madhupal, of the film.
“I am getting at least 30-40 calls a day. Some want the number of the heroine and others are furious with Madhupal. The director should have crosschecked the number before using it,” says Sasidhahran. The accounts officer has had enough and is planning to sue the film’s director and producer. “This is my official phone. I can’t dump it easily. You cannot monkey around with valid numbers. I have sought permission to sue the director and producer.” He has already filed a complaint with the police.
Though the film is in its third week, the calls haven’t stopped. “I never imagined Malayalis would be so crazy about their stars,” Sasidharan says. Director K. Madhu denies any foul play. “We crosschecked the number and were repeatedly told it did not exist. So we used it. In the two-and-a-half hour cinema, the number comes up only twice,” he claims.