No reason: Husain pulls Meenaxi out of theatres

A day after some Muslim organisations raised objections to one of the songs in painter-turned-director M.F. Husain’s recent film Meenaxi — A Tale of Three Cities, the artist today ordered withdrawal of the film from public shows. ‘‘I have told my sole distributor, Yash Chopra, to withdraw the film from public shows from all over the country with immediate effect,’’ Husain said here.

‘‘Since I have not sold the film to anyone, including Chopra, I would like to stop screening of the film,’’ he added. When asked for the reason, he said: ‘‘I have not made the film to make money…therefore, I need not give any reason for withdrawal of the screening of the film to the public.’’

The All India Ulema Council had yesterday demanded a ban on the film terming the qawwali in the film, Noor-un-Ala-Noor, as ‘‘blasphemous’’.