Sri Reddy denied MAA membership, actors working with her to be suspended

The MAA (Movie Artistes Association) has made it clear that it will not accept the membership application of actress Sri Reddy, and also said actors who work with her will be suspended from the association.

Actress Sri Reddy has been hopping from one media house to another demanding that the Telugu film industry show more preferences for local actresses. But none from the industry responded to her, and the actress went topless in public Saturday as a part of her protest. The move shocked many in the Telugu states.

Sri Reddy's move also upset and irked many in the Telugu film industry. The members of MAA called a press meet Sunday in Hyderabad to make its stand clear to the public. Addressing the media, the president of the Association condemned the actress for bringing shame to the industry.

Addressing the media, actor Meka Srikanth said: "This kind of an incident has never taken place since the beginning of the Telugu film industry. All the ladies are treated with a lot of respect in the industry and they are considered members of a family. The industry has maintained this respect toward all."

Meka Srikanth condemned Sri Reddy for going public with the issue of alleged injustice toward the Telugu women in the industry. He said: "She has appeared on several TV channels and commented a lot on Twitter and Facebook. Her act has come as a rude shock to many younger-generation stars in the film industry and created a fear among them."

Actor Shivaji Raja said: "Talented director like Teja has given her two film offers. Today, she is saying there are no offers for Telugu girls. Having starred in those movies, she has gone nude in public for cheap publicity. If we give membership to her, many other actresses will follow in her footsteps. MAA has some rules and regulations and everyone has to follow them and work hard day and night."

Actor Naresh said: "MAA has always maintained two things: transparency and discipline. And it has worked on old-age and mediclaim schemes for the welfare of artists. Applications for membership of MAA are scrutinized by three executive members. If they have any queries, the person has to respond to. But she (Sri Reddy) has not replied for 15 days."

Naresh also said: "We held an executive committee meeting this morning to discuss the issue of suspending her. The association has all the rights to suspend, as she has insulted both the industry as well as media with her chief publicity gimmick."