21 September,2026 04:21 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Radha and Ambika (Pictures via X and Facebook)
Actresses Radha and Ambika, who were among the most popular sisters in South Indian cinema during the 1980s, are now at the centre of an alleged family dispute involving financial documents. Radha has approached the Greater Chennai Police Commissioner with a complaint against her sister Ambika and brother Mallikarjuna Kunjan Nair, alleging that signed blank cheques kept at her residence were accessed and used without her knowledge.
As reported by Times Now, according to Radha's complaint, the cheques were allegedly presented in Ambika's name, with the actor claiming that an attempt was made to use them to seek around Rs 46 crore. The allegations are yet to be established.
Radha stated that she maintained a current account for her business, earlier known as ARS Garden Studio. She said that she had kept several signed blank cheques at her residence to manage routine expenses, including employee salaries, utility bills, taxes and garden maintenance, particularly when she was travelling.
The actor claimed that the business was renamed RR Gardens in January 2025. Following the change, she received a new cheque book and stopped using the older one. According to her complaint, she had forgotten about the unused cheque book until September 17, when her bank informed her that five of the old cheques had been presented for encashment in Ambika's name.
Radha said she immediately instructed the bank to stop payment, maintaining that she had neither handed over the cheques to Ambika nor entered into any financial arrangement that would warrant such payments.
She has further alleged that the cheques were filled in by her brother Mallikarjuna. Radha has claimed that he and Ambika acted together in using the documents for alleged unlawful financial gain. She also alleged that the cheques were accessed from her room while she was away from Chennai.
In her complaint, Radha has additionally claimed that she has been denied access to her share of the family property. She alleged that valuables, jewellery, property documents and other important records are kept there.
Radha has requested the police to investigate the allegations and initiate criminal action if they are found to be true. The complaint was submitted to the Greater Chennai Police Commissioner on September 21.
The dispute comes against the backdrop of the sisters' long-standing careers in cinema. In a recent conversation on Chai with Chithra, Radha recalled that there was never jealousy or competition between them during their years in films. She said the media initially identified her as Ambika's younger sister, but as her career grew, she gradually established an identity of her own. The allegations in Radha's complaint remain subject to investigation, and no findings have been established against Ambika or Mallikarjuna.
