New Delhi, Jan 14: Actor Anshu Ambani on Tuesday urged fans to move past the controversy over "Mazaka" director Trinadha Rao Nakkina's comments about her body and focus on the release of their upcoming Telugu film.

At the teaser launch event of "Mazaka" on Sunday, Nakkina's comments about Ambani's body type and "size" drew sharp criticism on social media and within the industry, leading the director to apologise to the actor publicly. He also said the remarks were made in "jest".

Ambani, in a video statement shared on social media, downplayed the incident and called Nakkina "the loveliest man on the planet".

"I believe his words may have been taken out of context... He has treated me as a member of his family. I've worked on this movie for 60 days, and I have been given nothing but respect, love, and lots of good wishes. Please, everybody, if we can put this to bed because I'm so excited about the movie.

"I feel we should all watch the film for the right reasons. Trinadha sir has been an absolute pleasure to work with. I could not have asked for a better director to bring me back to the Telugu film industry. I'm grateful that he has been guiding me through this process. I have nothing but love and gratitude for him and the entire team," the London-born actor said in the clip.

On Monday, Nakkina released a video statement and apologised for the comments he made, calling them "unfortunate".

“I made those comments in jest, hoping to make everyone laugh. However, if these remarks have hurt you, this is my mistake. I would like to issue a heartfelt apology, as they were objectionable. I will also personally apologise to Anshu. I didn’t realise this would become such a significant issue," he said.

Ambani, known for Telugu films "Manmadhudu" and "Raghavendra", and Tamil title "Jai", is returning to Telugu cinema after over 20 years with "Mazaka", which will release in theatres on February 21.

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Visakhapatnam (PTI): India fought back gallantly through Prasidh Krishna and Kuldeep Yadav after Quinton de Kock struck his 23rd hundred, keeping South Africa to a manageable 270 in the third and series-deciding final ODI, here Saturday.

India won the toss after judging the spin of the coin incorrectly 20 times in a row. They had little hesitation in inserting the Proteas into bat, a clear indication of dew factor dominating the thought.

After Arshdeep Singh sent back Ryan Rickelton early, De Kock (106, 89b, 8x4, 6x4) struck his seventh century against India and put on 113 runs off 124 balls with skipper Temba Bavuma (48, 67b) as the visitors moved to a healthy position.

De Kock was severe on Prasidh (4/66), who erred on length continuously in his first spell (2-0-27-0). The left-hander biffed the pacer for 6, 6, 4 in his second over to milk 18 runs.

The 32-year-old quickly pounced on anything that was short, and pacers Prasidh and Harshit offered him plenty of feed on his pet areas.

Bavuma was more sedate, and made runs through those typical dabs and jabs, occasionally unfurling a drive of elan.

De Kock moved to fifty in 42 balls, and never let the tempo down reaching his hundred in 79 balls.

India found temporary relief when Ravindra Jadeja induced a false slash from Bavuma to get caught by Virat Kohli at point.

The tourists got another move on through a 54-run partnership between De Kock and Matthew Breetzkle for the third wicket, and at 168 for two in 28 overs they were in a good position to press on.

But Breetzke's punishment of part-time spinner Tilak Varma forced a rethink in the Indian camp, as skipper KL Rahul brought back Prasidh for a second spell.

What a masterstroke it turned out to be! The Karnataka man broke the back of South Africa’s top and middle order in an exceptional second spell (4-0-11-3).

Breetzke was the first man to go, trapped plumb in front with a straight one and four balls later Aiden Markram uppishly chipped a fuller delivery to Kohli at short covers.

Prasidh soon castled De Kock, whose ugly cross-batted swipe failed to connect a full length delivery from the pacer.

All of a sudden, SA found themselves at a shaky 199 for five, losing three wickets in the space of three overs.

Once Prasidh was done away with the top and middle-order, left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep (4/41) took over and mopped up the tail as SA fell short of even a par total on this track.