Ram Gopal Varma's most awaited movie "Killing Veerappan", starring Kannada superstar Shivarajkumar, has once again landed in legal trouble, which is likely to delay its release.

"Killing Veerappan" made simultaneously in Telugu and Kannada, is scheduled to release across South India on 1 January. After watching its promos, a woman named Paneerselvi from Salem district has moved the Madras High Court on Tuesday, seeking interim hold on the film's release.

In her petition, Paneerselvi has reportedly claimed "Killing Veerappan" portrays Tamils in bad light. It wrongly depicts that the Karnataka Police alone had taken all the steps to catch Veerappan, and also falsely shows Veerappan's wife Muthulakshmi killing several persons, said the plea. 

Petitioner Paneerselvi has claimed "Killing Veerappan" is full of "false information" on forest brigand Veerappan. "The film is filled with false information and will create law and order problems in Tamil Nadu if allowed to release," IANS quoted her as saying. She has also requested the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) regional office to revoke the original "U" certification of the film.

"Killing Veerappan" is a docudrama thriller film, based on the events leading to Operation Cocoon to capture or kill Veerappan. Several films have already been made on Veerappan, but director Ram Gopal Varma says his film is different from all of them. The movie focuses on the central SP Senthamarai Kannan, the masterminded of Operation Cocoon.

On 23 December, Ram Gopal Varma had tweeted, "Biggest failure of the police department in crime history of india is 1200 policemen couldn't catch Veerappan for more than 15 years A very radical thought of a particular police officer is what which finally Killed Veerappan. "Killing Veerappan" film is that officers story. The very first show of "Killing Veerappan" will be shown to the Police Department ..am really curious to know their reactions. (sic)"

In a series of tweets on 27 December, Ram Gopal Varma has said: ""Killing Veerappan" will be the first film where the Villain has a love story and the Hero doesn't. "Killing Veerappan" at its heart is a deadly battle between an AWFUL CRIMINAL and a LAWFUL CRIMINAL #KillingVeerappan The cruellest of criminals also cannot hope to live if the police also decide to become cruel..That's the point of #KillingVeerappan (sic)"

Sandeep Bharadwaj plays the role of Veerappan in "Killing Veerappan", while Shivrajkumar appears as a police office. Parul Yadav and Yagna Shetty will be seen in the important roles. The first look of Sandeep has created a lot of curiosity among film-goers, who are eagerly waiting for the flick.

Initially, "Killing Veerappan" was slated to release in November 2015, but was delayed due to legal hassles over some financial issue. Recently, the makers sorted out all the issues and got the movie ready for grand release on 1 January. The film has received a "U" certificate from the CBFC. On 17 December, Ram Gopal Varma announced the release date of "Killing Veerappan" on his Twitter handle: "Now that all the legal cases and censor formalities are completely sorted "Killing Veerappan" is for sure releasing on January 1st." He added, #killingveerappan releasing in both Kannada and Telugu on January 1st. (sic)"

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