Actor Vijay Babu accused of assaulting producer Sandra Thomas: How their friendship soured

In the Malayalam film industry actors Vijay Babu and Sandra Thomas were known to be close friends.

The duo were partners in a production company, Friday Film House, and when Sandra tied the knot with Wilson John Thomas (the owner of an event management company) in July 2016, Vijay was one of the guests . “Today is my best friend’s wedding,” Vijay proclaimed in a Facebook post, that had a picture of him hugging Sandra. “(Here’s wishing) the best to Sandra and Wilson! God bless (you both).”

A mere six months after that exuberant post, Vijay stands accused of assaulting Sandra.

As per reports carried by several leading news outlets, the police registered a case against Vijay Babu after Sandra alleged that he physically assaulted her on the premises of their office in Elamakkara. Police sources were quoted as saying that Sandra was recuperating in a private hospital from her injuries. The police did not state what motives Sandra ascribed to Vijay for attacking her.

A Facebook post that was put by Vijay after news of the case broke indicated that a business dispute had come between the two former friends.

“A fake case has been filed against me by my most trusted partner and her husband for the sake for taking over (our) business property, which I disputed,” Vijay wrote.

The turn of events marks a turnaround from the time Vijay and Sandra first set up their company.

At the time, Vijay had said in an interview , “I found the spark in Sandra. At that point, I was…on the lookout for the ideal business partner. For me, partnership is all about complementing each other’s strengths and weaknesses. I found that Sandra and I have the same wavelengths and we complement each other too. I’m good with the profit side while Sandra is good at negotiating with people.”

How the dispute will be resolved is anyone’s guess at present; what seems certain is that the Sandra-Vijay partnership will have ended for good.