Bollywood faces criticism once more for perpetuating stereotypes, with the release of the Param Sundari trailer featuring Siddharth Malhotra and Jahnvi Kapoor.
The trailer hints at a classic cross-cultural love story between a South Indian woman and a North Indian man.
Just forty seconds in, stereotypes emerge. Viewers might suspect Bollywood of intentionally provoking reactions. Many noted the poor portrayal reminiscent of Shalini Unnikrishnan in The Kerala Story.
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Janhvi’s character, Thekappatil Sundari Damodaran Pillai, introduces herself with a name style outdated by generations. Yet, Bollywood seems stuck in the past.
As Sundari dances Mohiniyattam, a sequence follows involving boat racing, coconut tree climbing, and Param learning Kalaripayattu, suggesting that these activities define Malayalees.
While these elements might be forgiven, Sundari’s random use of ‘Manunni’ (meaning naive in context) is less so.
The trailer concludes with an attempt to address stereotypes. Sundari differentiates South Indian states by languages and actors.
However, her attempt at Malayalam was indecipherable, baffling this writer and many Malayalee creators.
Noora Al Helali, an Emirati creator fluent in Malayalam, criticized the lack of effort to learn the language by the film’s team.
She noted the difficulty non-natives might have with certain words, suggesting the cast could have worked with a dubbing artist for better accuracy.
Ahmed AlKaashekh, a UAE influencer from Kerala, urged Bollywood to improve cultural representation.
“It’s 2025; we’re over the clichéd lungi dances, jasmine flowers, and Rajnikanth references,” he said.
Pavithra Menon, a Kerala-based singer and presenter, questioned why genuine Malayalee actresses aren’t cast for authenticity.
There is also apparent censorship of criticism towards Param Sundari, debuting in theaters on August 29. Menon re-uploaded her video after Instagram removed her original critique.
