Actress Pratyusha made her debut in Tamil in a film titled 'Manu Needhi' directed by Thambi Ramaiah in 2000 and went on to enjoy success in others films like 'Super Kudumbam' opposite Prabhu, 'Thavasi' opposite Vijayakanth and Bharathiraja's 'Kadal Pookkal'.  Having won audience attention thanks to her simple but pretty looks her life was cut short when she suddenly committed suicide on 23rd February 2002 at the age of 20.  It was widely reported that she took the extreme step because her parents disapproved of her love affair with Siddharth Reddy who also attempted suicide but escaped.

Pratyusha's untimely death not only created shock but also controversy as a forensic report suggested that she died of forced strangling and presence of semen on the body suggested rape.  Now after fifteen years the actress's mother Sarojini Devi has accused her daughter's boy friend Siddharth Reddy and a group of high profile rich people of Hyderabad gang raped and murdered her and recreated the scene to look like suicide.  Only time will tell whether the case will be reopened.