Login Register
Follow Us

When politics meets cinema

Even though it is too early in the year for a controversy, but Bollywood has already opened its account. A lawyer has filed a petition in a Bihar court against Anupam Kher and 14 others for damaging the image of some top people with his upcoming film, The Accidental Prime Minister.

Show comments

Jasmine Singh

Even though it is too early in the year for a controversy, but Bollywood has already opened its account. A lawyer has filed a petition in a Bihar court against Anupam Kher and 14 others for damaging the image of some top people with his upcoming film, The Accidental Prime Minister. The film is based on the book by the same name, written by Sanjaya Baru, former Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh’s media advisor.

Political films have courted controversies time and again. Right from Sanjeev Kumar-starrer Aandhi, a 1975 political movie based on the life on Indira Gandhi, which was banned when she was in power, to Kissa Kursi Ka, a spoof movie on Sanjay Gandhi during Emergency to many Tamil groups demanding a ban on John Abraham-starrer Madras Cafe, which revolved around the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, films based on political figures have more often than not courted controversy. 

Matter of fact 

Amitabh Bachchan’s Aarakshan portrayed the caste-based reservation system in India. As a result, the movie was banned in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh before its release. Nandita Das’s Firaaq, based around 2002 Gujarat riots, was banned in Gujarat. Director Jeet Matharu believes in a democratic country, filmmakers should be allowed to call a spade a spade. “Some directors like social dramas and some politics. I would personally want to make a film on Partition; I would talk about people who were responsible for this,” he says.

Whether it was Anurag Kashyap’s Black Friday, based on 1993 serials blasts, or Parzania, directed by Rahul Dholaki, said to be a true story of a Parsi boy, Azhar, who disappeared during the communal riots in Gujarat in 2002, to Hava Aaney De, based on the sensitive topic of India-Pakistan war, which was never released in India, sentiments are sure in the line of fire. 

Loud & clear 

Actor Manav Vij, who was a part of Punjab 1984 and Udta Punjab, says, “I am for freedom of speech, which extends to filmmakers. People need to know the story; at the same time, the director should not make a film that provokes the audience.” 

Punjabi turf 

Ranjit Bawa-starrer Toofan Singh, Kaum De Heere, based on 1984 riots, Sadda Haq are some Punjabi movies that have courted controversy. Co-producer Seema Bhalla is all for Hindi and Punjabi films based on political issues, “A subject like this gives ultimate creative satisfaction. It can be a dicey proposition for a producer and distributor, but at the end of the day, filmmaking is also a responsibility as much as it is for entertainment. So, we should not only be making such films to make public aware, we should back them as well.” 

Actor Kuljinder Sidhu fails to understand why political leaders are uncomfortable seeing reality on screen. “A filmmaker will never take up a political subject to target a party; for him or her, it is a subject like any other. Yes, the director might want to highlight the reality; there is no harm in it as long as it is shot sensitively.” 

Bollywood films based on political issues 

  • Leader
  • Garam Hawa 
  • Aandhi 
  • Kissa Kursi Ka
  • Hu Tu Tu
  • Firaaq
  • Parzania
  • Black Friday
  • Rajneeti 
  • Indu Sarkar

jasmine@tribunemail.com

Show comments
Show comments

Top News

Most Read In 24 Hours