Prateek Tanmay
3 min readHyderabadJun 29, 2026 11:27 AM IST
Actress Radikaa Sarathkumar has renewed her criticism of how the scene outside K. Bhagyaraj’s Chennai residence was handled following his death, describing it as a moment that should have been reserved for mourning but instead turned into what she called a ‘circus’.
“Final goodbye, to 50 years of a very special friendship, a great creator, an evolved writer, a person who drew wonderful boundaries in cinema, a man I shared many laughs, wonderful work, who stood by my family always in his quiet loyal way. A shocking goodbye, for his family, friends, associates and fans,” Radikaa Sarathkumar wrote on X, while sharing unseen pictures with the filmmaker.
She went on to address the chaotic scene directly. “A place where all needed to digress and mourn in silence, turned into a circus, for all who came to pay their respects. Where and when do we change, or rather changed, to this callousness. The government and industry need to sit and chart protocols and collective management, and give all dignity to the departed soul,” she wrote.
Final goodbye,to 50 years of a very special friendship ,a great creator,a evolved writer,a person who drew wonderful boundaries in Cinema,a man I shared many laughs,wonderful work, who stood by my family always in his quiet loyal way. A shocking goodbye, for his family, friends,… pic.twitter.com/8GeRJ5sipP
— Radikaa Sarathkumar (@realradikaa) June 29, 2026
Appeal for privacy
The tweet follows an emotional, in-person appeal Radikaa Sarathkumar, a close friend of the Bhagyaraj family, made on the day his body was brought home on Saturday. As media crews crowded around the ambulance carrying his body, making it difficult for the family to bring him inside, Radikaa Sarathkumar stepped out in tears and asked media to step back, telling them, “Cinema is our life. But a human life is different. If you want TRP, we will act in a film for you. Please give us some privacy.” Even after repeated appeals, the crowd reportedly took some time to clear, delaying the family from bringing Bhagyaraj’s body into the house, with his son Shanthanu Bhagyaraj and daughter-in-law Keerthi visibly distressed as they entered.
Also Read: K Bhagyaraj Funeral Updates: Filmmaker laid to rest with full state honours
K Bhagyaraj, celebrated as one of Tamil cinema’s most influential writer-directors and was known as ‘Master of Screenplay’, died on Saturday, just over two weeks after the death of his own mentor, filmmaker Bharathiraja. His passing drew an outpouring of condolences from across the industry and politics, including from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay, and actors including Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Anil Kapoor and Chiranjeevi, with the state government according him full state honours on Sunday.
