Who Is Actor Bala In Legal Soup Over Family Dispute? Know His Career, Family, Controversy

Popular Malayalam actor Bala was arrested by the police on Monday following a complaint filed by his ex-wife Amrutha Suresh, a singer, and their daughter. Charges including defamation via social media, insulting womanhood, and cruelty towards children were pressed against him. Amid the new controversy and allegations, conditional bail was granted to him later in the day on certain conditions. Here is who he is.

Who is Actor Bala?

Bala was born into a family with strong ties to the film industry. His grandfather owned Arunachala Studios, while his father, Jeyakumar, directed more than 350 films and documentaries. His brother, Siva, has also made his mark as a director and cinematographer in South Indian cinema.

On August 27, 2010, Bala married Malayali singer Amrutha Suresh, who gained fame as an Idea Star Singer. Later, they welcomed a daughter, Avantika, in September 2012, but the couple divorced in 2019 after four years of living apart. He was arrested on October 13, 2024, following a complaint from his ex-wife.

On September 5, 2021, Bala married Elizabeth Udayan, a medical professional. In a 2023 interview, he then mentioned that he was living separately from her.

He debuted in Telugu cinema with 2 Much in 2002 and Tamil with Anbu in 2003. Bala enjoyed success in various Malayalam films, notably receiving acclaim for his performance in Puthiya Mukham in 2009. He returned to Tamil cinema in 2014 with Veeram, which his brother Siva directed, achieving both critical and commercial success.

Bala made his directorial debut with the 2012 Malayalam action film The Hitlist, where he also played the lead role. In 2015 and 2016, he took on notable supporting roles in the period romantic drama Ennu Ninte Moideen and the action films Pulimurugan and Lucifer in 2019, all of which became the highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time.

What transpired between Bala and his former wife?

As per ANI reports, the dispute between the two escalated when Bala claimed that Amrutha was preventing him from seeing their daughter. In response, Avantika, their daughter, posted a video stating that Bala had been misbehaving with both her and her mother. Bala, later responded in another video, saying that if Avantika did not want to meet him, he would no longer pursue a relationship with her.

Amrutha's complaint also mentioned that Bala's social media posts had emotionally harmed their daughter. Bala and his manager were arrested at his flat in Kochi.