Vignesh Shivan explains viral ‘not normal people’ controversy; 'LIK' director says video was edited for views and likes

While promoting his latest film 'Love Insurance Kompany,' director Vignesh Shivan addressed a controversy that went viral on social media a few months ago. The director had faced criticism along with his wife, actress Nayanthara, after a video from an influencer event sparked debate online. The event was organised to promote their sanitary napkin brand, where several influencers were invited to take part in the campaign.During the event, a video clip circulated widely showing a manager asking the crowd to cooperate and saying that they were “not normal people.” The line quickly triggered trolling on social media, with many users accusing the couple of showing arrogance. Soon after the video spread online, many influencers and social media users criticised the statement. Several posts claimed that the couple had tried to portray themselves as superior by saying they were “not normal people.” Videos about the incident gathered wider attention and the issue became a trending topic for a few days. Some influencers who attended the event also shared clips pointing out mismanagement and crowd control problems during the programme. As the discussion grew online, the controversy began to overshadow the original purpose of the promotional event.In a recent interview with Behindwoods, Vignesh Shivan has stated that it was a misunderstood statement that might have been taken out of context. According to him, the managers said this under a completely different context while speaking to the influencers present at the venue. The director said, “He actually said, ‘We are not normal people, we are influencers.’ It was his way of telling them to behave appropriately because they were influencers and not just random people.” According to him, the original line was later edited in a way that made it sound like the manager was referring to Vignesh Shivan and Nayanthara instead. Vignesh Shivan further revealed that the team had contacted the person who first posted the viral video. However, the clip was not taken down because it was receiving a large number of views online. He said, “Those who uploaded the video changed ‘we are’ into ‘they are’ and twisted the story for likes and views. When we contacted the person who posted it, he asked us to leave it since it was getting huge views.”Meanwhile, Vignesh Shivan is currently busy promoting 'Love Insurance Kompany,' which stars Pradeep Ranganathan, Krithi Shetty, and S. J. Suryah. Despite mixed reviews, the film has managed to collect around Rs 32 crore in India within its first few days of release.