Radikaa Sarathkumar Slams Paps For Invading Privacy At K Bhagyaraj’s Funeral

Actor Radikaa Sarathkumar slammed the paparazzi for their “insensitive” coverage of veteran filmmaker K. Bhagyaraj’s funeral, calling for restraint and dignity in a time of profound grief and loss. Veteran filmmaker K. Bhagyaraj died on June 27 in Chennai after suffering a cardiac arrest at the age of 73. He was cremated with full state honours on June 28, with several actors and technicians from Tamil cinema attending the final rites at Besant Nagar crematorium.

Radikaa Sarathkumar’s angry posts

During the funeral of K. Bhagyaraj, Radikaa appealed for restraint as photographers zoomed in on the grief of family members. Sharing a video of the confrontation, the actor wrote on Instagram, “Funeral paparazzi and grief onlookers should be booked. This is so sad.”

On Monday, she wrote a heartfelt tribute to the director and urged the government and the industry to establish protocols to ensure due dignity for the departed.

“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 and wonderful work with, who stood by my family always in his quiet, loyal way. A shocking goodbye for his family, friends, associates and fans.

“A place where all needed to digress and mourn in silence turned into a circus for all who came to pay their respects. When and where do we change—or rather, when did we change—to this callousness? The government and the industry need to sit and chart protocols and collective management, and give dignity to the departed soul,” she wrote on X.

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

During Bharathiraja’s funeral earlier in June, she had requested that the media give the family space. When Bhagyaraj’s body was brought home on June 27, she once again folded her hands and appealed for privacy.

“A humble request to all the press here. Cinema is our occupation, but we are also humans at the end of the day. If you want drama for the sake of TRP ratings, I will deliver that. Please, give us some privacy,” she said.

Actor Suhasini Mani Ratnam was also seen intervening during the funeral procession after people were seen recording visuals of Bhagyaraj’s wife Poornima and the family inside the hearse.

Also Read | K Bhagyaraj Cremated With State Honours In Chennai