Abhijeet Deshpande on Har Har Mahadev's screening being disrupted: 'Can't be anything more disgusting than this'

According to a report, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and former cabinet minister in the MVA government Jitendra Awhad on Monday forced the cancellation of the screening of Marathi movie Har Har Mahadev that was being screened at a theatre in a Thane mall. There were complaints that some moviegoers were assaulted by the NCP workers as well.

Awhad claims the film “distorted the Maratha history and such movies would not be allowed to be released in the state”.

Reacting to this, director Abhijeet Deshpande says, “Yesterday, these people barged into a theatre and attacked the audience. I don’t think there can be anything more disgusting than this because it is the audiences for whom we make our movies. It is the audiences who spend their precious money and time to come to the theatres to spend time. And if they are not going to be in a safe environment, then it is extremely shameful.”

Deshpande feels the entire film industry should come forward to take a stand against this hooliganism. “For how long should the movie industry remain a quiet witness to the aggressive attempts by these extra-constitutional political forces to shut us up and kill our freedom? Somewhere, all of have to take stance against such bullying. Journalists, filmmakers, everyone should get together. A police complaint has already been filed against a 100-odd people. More action is being initiated.”

Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based film critic who has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. He tweets at @SubhashK_Jha.

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