Deepa ill, defers meeting with Basu

Mehta rang up the Deputy Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharjee on Thursday night to inform that she was running high temperature and that doctor had advised her rest, he said.

The filmmaker was scheduled to call on Basu and Bhattacharjee at the State secretariat on Friday along with her star actress Shabana Azmi.

The meeting was earlier fixed for the day following Azmi8217;s telephonic conversations with the Chief Minister and CPIM general secretary Harkishen Singh Surjeet expressing desire to shoot the film in West Bengal.

Deepa had to pack up with her entire crew and cast from Varanasi early this month following violent protests by sangh parivar led outfits, alleging that the film portrayed Hindu culture and widows in a poor light.

Meanwhile, the BJP8217;s women wing Mahila Morcha has decided to take to the streets to protest the shooting of the film quot;which has portrayed a highly distorted image of the Bengali widows living in Varanasi.quot;

The Mahila Morcha State general secretary Krishna Bhattacharya said they would shortly announce their agitation programme.

However, Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad ABVP said it would wait for the State Government to formally quot;allowquot; the film unit to shoot in the State before chalking out quot;our course of action.quot;

BJP state general secretary Rahul Sinha said his party would not quot;directlyquot; confront the shooting team, but would lend quot;moral supportquot; to all those opposed to the film.

He said his party had already impressed upon the BJP leadership quot;the possible fall-outquot; of the film in West Bengal quot;where people, in general, will oppose the shooting.quot;

Sinha said they had urged the Centre to withdraw permission to the shooting quot;in the national interestquot;.

Trinamool Congress, however, has welcomed shooting of the film in the State with an assurance to offer all support. Congress too has welcomed the team.