Sruthi Hariharan on The Verdict: My character, Namrutha, is the heart of the film, which I love | Exclusive

It’s been a while since Lucia-fame Sruthi Hariharan was seen onscreen; her last in Kannada was 2023’s Head Bush, and in Tamil, even longer – nearly 8 years ago. She is now prepping for a comeback of sorts with The Verdict, a crime thriller directed by debutant Krishna Sankar, which was shot entirely in the US. The film will release in theatres on May 30, 2025, ahead of which, the team released a trailer.

What's The Verdict about?

The plot, according to the trailer, revolves around circumstances of the death of a senior citizen, Elisa (Suhasini Maniratnam), after she made certain provisions in her will to provide substantial amounts to her employees, including Namrutha (Sruthi Hariharan). When Namrutha then becomes the main suspect, a courtroom drama ensues. Did Namrutha actually kill Elisa or was she an accomplice? Or is she being framed?

In Chennai to promote the film, Solo actress Sruthi took out a few minutes off to speak to OTTplay about the film. “The Verdict is a whodunit murder mystery-meets-courtroom drama, which, for me seemed very interesting. When I read the script, it seemed fast-paced and the screenplay also felt nice, even though Krishna is a debutant. Krishna has some theatre background in Austin, where the film is set and got together with a friend, Prakash Mohandas, to make the film. Prakash plays the main lead, Varun, in the film,” she tells us.

Sruthi was among the first to be cast, followed by Varalaxmi Sarathkumar as her defense lawyer, Suhasini and Vidyullekha, among others. “The film explores the Indian American diaspora, within the space of a murder mystery thriller. For me, the experience of shooting in the US was new and exciting. It was also an opportunity to be in the US, a place I’ve always liked seeing. We shot the film in 23 days flat, which, I’d say is down to Krishna and Prakash’s excellent pre-production planning,” she adds.

Her character, Namrutha is one of the leads, who is pretty much the heart of the film, which Sruthi loves. “But that does not take away the importance of what all the other characters bring to the table. Playing Namrutha was quite challenging, in the sense that she is quite simple – nothing complex about her. I can’t say that she is temperamental, strong or ambitious, because none of that is defined. What’s interesting about Namrutha is that her life takes such different turns that she is forced to adapt to it. I just had to keep reacting to what life was throwing at Namrutha,” the Urvi actre ss explains.

Meanwhile, the film’s content may seem familiar to audiences who watch a lot of US or British crime/courtroom dramas, but for the unversed, the US setting of the story and how their justice system functions could be novel, reckons Sruthi. “The story may seem inspired from existing stories, but when you look at it from a presentation point of view, it’s going to be interesting to see how the audience receives it, because it is a culturally diverse film. The narrative will keep audiences guessing as to who committed the crime,” says Sruthi.