Telugu actor death: Film producer, 2 others arrested for abetment to suicide

A Tollywood producer, a TV actor and a realtor have been put behind bars in connection with the suicidal death of a television actor in Hyderabad last week. Sravani Kondapalli, 26, was found dead in the bathroom of her apartment in Hyderabad’s Madhura Nagar on September 8.

Gummakonda Ashok Reddy, known for producing hit films like “RX-100”, surrendered on Wednesday. TV actor Ambati Devaraja Reddy, 24, and realtor Mangamuthula Sai Krishna Reddy, 28, were arrested earlier this week and sent to judicial custody on Monday.

Joint Commissioner of Police AR Srinivas said that all three accused were in a relationship with Sravani at one point of time or the other and each had promised to marry her.

Sravani is said to have been in a relationship with Sai Krishna in 2018, then Ashok Reddy and later with Devaraja.

Sravani met Sai Krishna in 2015 and they were together for three years before parting ways. In 2017, Sravani acted in the film ‘Prematha Karthik’, which was produced by Ashok Reddy. She was in a relationship with Ashok for a brief period and then broke up. Ashok, however, remained in touch with her family, police said.

In August 2019, she met Devaraja Reddy, an aspiring actor. Both shot several TikTok videos together which later went viral. Police said that Devaraja came to Hyderabad in November 2019 to audition for a serial and stayed with Sravani and her family for nine days. It was during these nine days that Devaraja came to know about Sai Krishna Reddy and Ashok Reddy and started suspecting her. The relationship between the two soured to an extent that both their families filed cases against each other in June 2020, added the police.

Meanwhile, Sravani tried to patch up with Devaraja Reddy. “On finding out the same, Ashok Reddy, Sai Krishna Reddy and Sravani’s own family harassed her physically and mentally,” the police press note said.

A day before she died, Sravani met with Devaraja Reddy. “While they were about to leave the hotel after dinner around 10.30 pm, Sai Krishna Reddy came and tried to attack Devaraja Reddy, but Sravani intervened. Sai slapped Sravani and forcibly took her in an auto to her house,” the police said.

Around 6 pm on September 8, she spoke with Devaraja Reddy and said she was ending her life due to the harassment of Devaraja Reddy, Sai Krishna Reddy, and Ashok Reddy, the police added.

A police officer told indianexpress.com that Sravani’s parents alleged that Devaraja Reddy has been harassing her. “Parents say she wanted to marry Sai Krishna Reddy and not Devaraja Reddy. A day before she died, Sai Krishna had tried to attack Devaraja. Whereas Ashok Reddy was also harassing her by laying down conditions and restrictions on her freedom. Due to torture from everyone, she decided to end her life,” he said.

Sravani Kondapalli had played lead roles in popular Telugu serials “Manasu Mamatha” and “Mounaragam”. She was from Andhra Pradesh’s West Godavari district and had worked in TV serials for the last eight years.