Actress and politician Kangana Ranaut has sought police help ahead of the release of her movie Emergency on Sept 6 after she reportedly received threats on social media.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi was recently in the eye of a storm over her comments on the farmers’ protests in India, which saw her being rapped by her own party.
Kangana, whom the BJP said was directed not to make similar statements again, had implied that “foreign powers” were behind the farmers’ protests and alleged that “what happened in Bangladesh” could have also happened in India were it not for its “top leadership”.
Kangana plays former Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi in the Hindi movie Emergency.
The biographical political thriller, directed and co-produced by Kangana, is based on the Emergency in India, a 21-month period from 1975 to 1977 when the late Mrs Gandhi declared a state of emergency across the country citing internal and external threats.
For much of that period, most of Mrs Gandhi’s political opponents were imprisoned and the press was censored. More than 100,000 political opponents, journalists and dissenters were imprisoned.
Based on a screenplay by Ritesh Shah, the film features Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Vishak Nair, Mahima Chaudhry, Milind Soman and Satish Kaushik in pivotal roles.
Sikh bodies believe the movie aims to “create an anti-Sikh narrative about the martyrs of June 1984”.
The year saw anti-Sikh riots following the assassination of Mrs Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards, who were upset by the Indian government’s Operation Blue Star – a military operation carried out at Amritsar’s Golden Temple.
Reacting to the film and its premise, a video on social media shows a man saying: “I’m a very proud Indian. If I spot you anywhere in my country and in my Maharashtra, I’m saying this, not just as a Sikh and a proud Marathi, but all my Hindu, Christian and Muslim brothers will also welcome you with chappals.”
Kangana shared the video on her X handle and tagged Himachal, Punjab, and Maharashtra police requesting them to look into the matter.
Another person in the clip can be heard saying “History cannot be changed. If they portray Sikhs as terrorists in the film, then remember what happened to the person about whom the movie is being made (a reference to Mrs Gandhi’s assassination).”
The Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs, and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) have already demanded an immediate ban on Emergency, claiming it tries to “character assassinate” Sikhs.
The SGPC has issued a legal notice to the producers, demanding the removal of the movie’s trailer, which was released earlier this month, citing “anti-Sikh scenes”.
SGPC secretary Partap Singh also wrote to the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting and the Central Board of Film Certification’s Chairperson seeking a ban on the film.
The issue has been brought before the High Court following a petition by Mr Gurinder Singh and Mr Jagmohan Singh – both residents of Mohali district in Punjab.
It sought directives to remove or delete scenes from the movie, arguing that they target the Sikh community by presenting false and misleading information.
Additionally, the petitioners have called for the Punjab Director-General of Police to register a police report against Kangana.
Kangana had announced Emergency in 2021, clarifying that, while it is a political drama, it is not a biopic of Mrs Gandhi.
She added that the film’s narrative delves into Mrs Gandhi’s political and personal life, with a special focus on the controversial Emergency period.
