'They took up daily wages for me': When Dileep turned emotional and thanked fans for supporting him during his trial days

Back in June 2025, Dileep's words touched many of the people attending a 50-day celebration for his newly released film, 'Prince and Family.' The day is recognized by many as representing one of the most significant periods of time within Dileep's life and career in the film industry. In sharing his thoughts and emotions regarding the film business, he also reflected back on moments of great joy from early in his career as well as difficulties that pushed him to his limits.Dileep grew emotional as he spoke about the period when his future in the industry appeared uncertain. “There was a time when some decided that an actor named Dileep was no longer needed,” he said, his voice trembling. During that phase, he revealed, his fan associations continued their charitable activities even when he was unable to support them financially. Some members, he said, took up daily wage work to ensure those initiatives did not stop. “They did it from their hard-earned income, purely out of love,” he said, calling them his greatest strength.The actor then took the audience back to his early career memories. He fondly recalled watching ‘Meesa Madhavan’ at Shenoys Theatre in Kochi, entering the hall quietly only to be recognized moments later by fans. The atmosphere changed instantly, with the audience surrounding him in excitement. Dileep also spoke about his college days at Maharaja’s College and the simple pleasure of watching films at Kavitha Theatre, never imagining that he would one day become a leading hero in Malayalam cinema.The actor recently returned home to Aluva amid a wave of emotion and celebration following his acquittal in the 2017 actress abduction and rape case, a verdict that saw six others convicted and sent to prison. As per Mathrubhumi, the Ernakulam Sessions Court had delivered a mixed verdict. While Dileep was acquitted, with the judges noting that the allegation of orchestrating the assault could not be proven, six others, including Pulsar Suni, Martin Antony, B. Manikandan, VP Vijeesh, H. Saleem, and C. Pradeep, were convicted under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.