Veteran Tamil actress Simran, who is currently doing well in the success of her latest film Tourist Family, has finally addressed the controversy surrounding her viral speech at the JWF Movie Award 2025. The actress, who received acclaim for her performance in Andhagan, stirred conversations after speaking candidly about a past hurtful encounter with a fellow female actor.
During her award acceptance speech, Simran shared an experience being mocked for taking on ‘aunty roles’, a term used to describe older female characters. She revealed that after complimenting a co-star on her performance, the actress had coldly replied, “At least I’m not doing aunty roles”. A comment that Simran admitted was sensitive and left her deeply hurt.
In her speech, Simran countered the remark by saying she would ‘rather do’ meaningful aunty roles than meaningless dabba roles”, referencing characters that lack depth. The comment quickly went viral, sparking online speculation that it was a dig at actress Jyotika, who recently starred in the web series Dabba Cartel. However, Simran did not name anyone at the time, prompting further debate among the audience.
Now in a follow up interview with JFW, Simran has clarified her stance and urged people to stop overanalyzing her words. She explained.
“Dabba Cartel is a good web series. People are just breaking down everything and forming their own theories”. She added that the person who made the earlier hurtful and sensitive comment recognized herself in Simran’s speech and reached out privately with an apology, “She messaged me saying she’s sorry and didn’t mean to hurt me. That was enough for me”, Simran said.
Simran went on to explain why she chose to speak out publicly.
“The award stage was my stage, and I wanted to open up. I generally do not gossip or talk much about these things. But I was worried that I would be considered weak if I didn’t talk back. So I poured my heart out on that stage, as I was hurt. I understand that the actor gave her opinion, but there has to be a right choice of words. After I said those things at the event, I got a personal message from her apologizing for hurting me.”
While speculation originally pointed fingers at Jyotika or even actress Laila, Simran neither confirmed nor denied these guesses. When was asked, Simran just stated that those are just speculations. Instead she chose to focus on the broader message, that all roles, regardless of age or label, deserve respect. Citing her performance as a mother in Kannathil Muthamittal as an example, Simran stated that powerful roles can come in any form, and that an actor’s worth should not be diminished by any age or character type.
On the professional front, Simran is enjoying a strong comeback. Besides her lead role in Tourist Family, with Sasikumar and directed by Abishan Jeevinth, she also made a cameo appearance in Ajith’s Good Bad Ugly and will next be seen in Lokesh Kumar’s ‘The Last One’.
Sources: PinkVilla, Cinema Express
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