RIGHT-WING OUTFIT Hindu Jagran Manch has taken offence to Bengali film Rongberonger Korhi for naming its characters Ram and Sita and depicting their separation. Alleging that the movie has hurt the sentiments of Hindus, the outfit on Friday submitted a letter to the regional director of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), asking the board not to certify the film if the names of the characters are not changed. The group also held demonstrations outside the CBFC office here. Spokesperson of the West Bengal unit of Hindu Jagran Manch, Vivek Singh, has also written to Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Smriti Irani. “Through media reports we have come to know that the characters in the movie have been named as Ram and Sita and they separate at the end of the movie. Since the movie is not based on Ramayana, therefore, the characters in the movie should not be named Ram and Sita. Even if they have done so, their separation should not have been depicted in the movie,” Singh said. “It is a deliberate attempt to hurt Hindu sentiments. Why these characters were not named Joseph and Mariyum or Mohammad and Ayesha? We would ask the director of the movie to change the names of the character and release the movie,” he added, alleging that the director of the movie, Ranjan Ghosh, wanted to create a controversy to win a National Award. The movie stars Rituparna Sengupta, Chiranjeet Chakraborty, Soham Chakraborty, Ritwick Chakraborty and Arunima Ghosh. No release date has been set yet as the film is still awaiting certification from CBFC. When contacted, director Ranjan Ghosh said the move was an attempt to curb the “creative freedom of artists.” “This is an unreasonable demand. The movie has not been screened yet. People should be able to watch the film and decide for themselves. How can someone point a finger at the movie without seeing its content? The movie is not based on Ramayana. It is based on the lives of some characters named Ram and Sita. The subject of the movie has not been dealt irresponsibly,” Ghosh said. “This entire thing is a cheap publicity gimmick by this fringe organisation, which wants to hog the limelight. It is piggybacking the film for publicity. It is an attempt to curb the creative freedom of artists,” he added. Rongberonger Korhi is his second feature film. “It is a love story and there is an element of separation in the film. I will not change the name of my characters and there is a noble thought behind naming the characters. People will come to know about it after watching the film. It has not been done to hurt the sentiment of anyone. On the other hand, no one can dictate what people will be wearing and what they will eat. I will ask the CBFC not to pay heed to the demands of this organisation,” Ghosh said. State BJP president Dilip Ghosh told PTI that the trend of naming film characters after Hindu Gods or revered mythological characters might harm the sentiments of people.
