Putting an end to a controversy that he spoke high about Telugu audience and belittled Tamil fans, Karthi Sivakumar has said he always admired and loved Tamil Nadu and its people. "They are like my family members," he said.

The buzz was that Karthi, while speaking at a function in Hyderabad recently, said that he liked the Telugu audiences more as they come to theatres to watch films and are also generous in their appreciation.

This has paved way to a row, and a video clipping of Karthi's speech has gone viral on the worldwide web. Reacting to this, the 'Paruthiveeran' actor says, "It's true that I praised Telugu audience. But I never belittled Tamil fans."

He adds: "The comment was to purely express my gratitude to the audience in Tollywood, who supported my films to a great extent. This doesn't mean that I insulted Tamil fans. I believe that I don't want to say again and again that I love my parents."