Actor Vijay Sethupathi is all set to play the lead in the upcoming biopic of Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan in the movie 800 directed by MS Sripathy and produced by DAR motion pictures and Movie Train productions.

The motion poster of this movie was released before two days and people have been urging Vijay Sethupathi not to act in this movie claiming that Muralitharan was against the LTTE and that he was against the Tamils and their sentiments and there were many hashtags trending against Vijay Sethupathi.

Following this the production house has issued a statement that 800 won't belittle struggles of Eelam Tamils. The statement read "It came to our notice that our film "800", the biopic of Muttiah Muralitharan featuring Vijay Sethupathi in the lead, is being politicized in many ways. However, we want to clarify that 800 is purely a sports biography film about the legendary cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan. The film is a journey about a man who hails from the Tamil migrant community, going on to become the highest wicket taker of all time. The film does not make any political statement favouring any community. This film is intended to be an inspiration for the young generation to achieve their dreams irrespective of the difficulties they come across in their journey. We as the Producers assure that this film will not showcase any scenes that would belittle the struggles of Eelam Tamils in Sri Lanka or hurt their sentiments in any way. On a positive note the Film will engage the Tamil Film community in Sri Lanka providing the artists and technicians a platform to showcase their talents on a global stage. Art is beyond boundaries; it unites people all across. Artists belong to the world. We wish to spread only Positivity, Love and Hope."