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Journalism of Courage
NEWLY released film Adipurush, based on the Ramayana, has run into a political storm. While the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) hit out at the film for “hurting Indian sensibilities” and pointed out that the BJP is “involved” with the film, Congress Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel demanded that the film be banned. Even a BJP leader said the film should be looked at the Censor Board again.
Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate called the language used in the film “tapori (one used by street thugs)” and said it had hurt the sentiments of the people. There is a difference between “religion and the business of religion”, she said. “You will get cheap popularity on the strength of your sycophancy, but lack of talent definitely comes in the way. The writer who calls Hanuman ‘Tere Baap ki Jali (a dialogue from the film)’ is… a very vulgar type.”
Speaking to reporters in Raipur at his official residence, Baghel said: “An attempt is being made to tarnish the image of all our deities. We have seen the gentle face of Lord Ram and that of Lord Hanuman drenched in devotion, but for the last few years an attempt is being made to change this image.”
Baghel said: “Hanuman has been introduced as a symbol of wisdom, power and devotion since our childhood.” However, in the film, he said: “Lord Ram is shown as the ‘Yuddhak’ (warrior) Ram and Hanuman as the angry bird… The dialogues and language are indecent. In Tulsidas’s Ramayana, Lord Ram was portrayed as ‘Maryada Purushottam’.
He also accused Adipurush of distorting the image of Ram, adding: “When Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister, he suggested to Ramanand Sagar to make the epic serial Ramayana, which became hugely popular. The pictures of Lord Ram and Hanuman were distorted on the pretext of ‘Adipurush’ and indecent words were put in the mouths of the characters. What will the young generation learn from this?”
Hitting out at the BJP, Baghel said: “Why are people of those political parties which call themselves the custodian of religion silent on this movie? Why are BJP leaders who kept giving statements on The Kashmir Files and The Kerala Story silent on Adipursh? Even lower-rung leaders of the BJP are not speaking anything on this.”
Taking to Twitter, Sena (UBT) spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi demanded an apology from the film’s writer, Manoj Muntashir, and director Om Raut.
“The dialogue writer of Adipurush @manojmuntashir as well as the director should apologise to the nation for the pedestrian dialogues written for the movie, especially for Lord Hanuman. It hurts every Indian’s sensibilities to see the kind of language being attributed to our revered gods in the name of entertainment. You make a movie on Maryada Purushottam Ram and cross all boundaries of Maryada (respect) for quick box office success, (this) is unacceptable,” she said.
Chaturvedi later tweeted a picture of a credit roll from the film, which thanks Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath, and his fellow BJP counterparts from Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Assam and Uttarakhand, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Manohar Lal Khattar, Himanta Biswa Sarma and Pushkar Singh Dhami, apart from Maharashtra CM and BJP ally Eknath Shinde.
“All of them owe the nation an apology for their blessings to a movie that has desecrated our revered gods. Shame on them,” she tweeted.
AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh alleged that BJP leaders were involved in the making of a film that disrespects Hindu religion and its gods. He told news agency PTI: “BJP leaders got the film made. Yogi Adityanath, Shivraj Singh, Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, Manohar Lal Khattar are involved in it. The Hindu dharma Maryada Purushottam Ram, Maa Sita, Bajrang Bali Hanuman are all being insulted. Such objectionable and disgusting language has been used in the film that has no link to the Ramcharitmanas or Ramayana.”
At a press conference organised by the AAP, Singh said: “You will feel ashamed if you listen to the dialogues of this movie. The BJP is a party of ruffians and is also showing arrogance in religion.”
He also demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president J P Nadda. “BJP people neither belong to Lord Ram, nor belong to common people, nor are they of any use. In this film, Mother Sita was stabbed on the basis of imagination. Will ‘Ramayana’ also be changed on the basis of imagination? BJP people are not the ones who believe in Hindu religion, they are the ones who destroy it,” he said.
Even Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor stepped in to say the film should be re-examined for its “controversial scenes and dialogues”. In an appeal to Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur, as per a report in PTI, Kapoor tweeted: “Film ‘Adipurush’ is being opposed everywhere. Therefore it is requested that its controversial scenes and dialogues should be re-examined. The Censor Board should temporarily suspend its censor certificate and its exhibition should be banned till it is reviewed again.”
Produced by T-Series, Adipurush has a budget of Rs 500 crore. In a press note, T-Series claimed the film had recorded “highest day one collection for any film made in Hindi on pan-India level”.
Earlier, at the launch of the film’s trailer, the director had announced that a seat would be reserved for Lord Hanuman at every screening.
with PTI inputs
