Pa Ranjith, Vettuvam makers booked for negligence in stuntmen Mohan Raj’s death, director posts condolence note

Director Pa Ranjith and three others have been booked by police for the death of stunt performer S Mohan Raju on Monday. Raju died in a stunt gone wrong during the shooting of Vettuvam in Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu. They have been booked for causing death by negligence. As the charges came to the public’s attention, Ranjith posted a long condolence note for Mohan and called it a devastating experience and expressed his sorrow about losing a “veteran’ of the film industry.

In his message on X (formerly Twitter), Ranjith explained the accident and said that he would like to express his support for the family of the deceased stuntman. “On the morning of 13th July, we lost unexpectedly a talented stunt artist and a long-time colleague, Mr Mohan Raj, on the sets of our film Vettuvam, and our heart is broken for his wife, children, family and all who knew and loved Mohan Raj Anna as a colleague and a friend.” The director shared how the entire day had been carefully planned and everyone was ready for perfect execution under the supervision of stunt director Dilip Subbarayan. “Despite all of our preparations and precautions, we ended up losing a man who had unparalleled experience and achievements, who made his family, colleagues and directors proud with the quality of his work, which has affected us deeply. He will have our respect, love and adoration always.”

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According to the FIR, four people included Ranjith, stunt choreographer Vinoth, manager of Ranjith’s Neelam Productions, and the car’s owner Prabhakaran have been booked under sections 289 (negligent conduct with respect to machinery), 125 (endangering life or personal safety of others), and 106(1) (causing death by negligence) of the BNS Act.

Mohan, who was known as ‘Raju’, was performing a car toppling sequence for the film when the stunt went out of control. He was rushed to the Nagapattinam Government Medical College Hospital, but the doctors declared him dead after reaching the hospital.