Emergency Release Postponed: What Are The Objections Against Kangana Ranaut Starrer?

Emergency Release Postponed: The Kangana Ranaut starrer was scheduled to hit the big screens on September 6. In the movie, the actress-turned-politician essays the role of the former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Even though the team was actively promoting the movie and held pre-release events, troubles mounted a week after the trailer was launched on August 14. Apex Sikh religious body filed a complaint against the makers demanding a ban on the movie alleging it shows the community in a negative light.

Following this, the CBFC withheld the censor certificate of Emergency blocking it from releasing on September 6 as planned. The movie makers then moved to the Bombay High Court to seek a direction for CBFC. Hpwever, the court has now adjourned the matter to September 19.

What is Emergency about?

Kangana Ranaut, a BJP MP, stars in the role of former prime minister Indira Gandhi in Emergency. The emergency, imposed on June 25, 1975, by the then Gandhi-led Congress government, saw a suspension of civil rights for nearly two years. The film also stars Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Vishak Nair, Mahima Chaudhry, Milind Soman and Satish Kaushik in pivotal roles.

The film is based on true events that unfolded in 1975. It traces the incident that took place under the leadership of one of the most Powerful Women in Indian History Indira Gandhi. The release of the period political drama has been delayed multiple times; it was previously scheduled to be released on November 24, 2023.

Why are people demanding a ban on Emergency release? 

On August 22, a week after the release of the Emergency trailer, the Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs, and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) demanded an immediate ban on the film, claiming it tries to “character assassinate” Sikhs. SGPC chief Harjinder Singh Dhami, addressing a press conference, also sought the registration of an FIR against the Kangana Ranaut, the film’s writer, director, producer and lead actor.

This is a “despicable act” of disrespecting the community by “creating an anti-Sikh narrative about the martyrs of June 1984”, SGPC chief said in a statement. Dhami said this film was made by Ranaut, who remains in controversy due to her anti-Sikh and anti-Punjab statements, with the intention of “deliberately character assassinating; Sikhs, which the community cannot tolerate.

In his letter to the board on Wednesday, the he Shiromani Akali Dal's Delhi president Paramjit Singh Sarna said the trailer of the film, which was released recently, "depicts erroneous historical facts that not only misrepresent the Sikh community but also promotes hatred and social discord".

Sarna said, "Given the potential of this film to incite communal tensions and spread misinformation, I strongly urge the CBFC to exercise its authority to prevent its release."

He said that a "thick line must be drawn between the right to freedom of speech and the propagation of hateful content that threatens the harmony of our society".

CBFC demands modifications in Kangana Ranaut starrer

On August 30, Kangana Ranaut took to her social media accounts to share a video of herself sharing the reason behind delays in the release of her directorial Emergency. She claimed that the film was cleared for certification but the same has been retracted. She reasoned that due to increasing threats, the CBFC has requested the makers to make modifications to the movie.

In a video addressing her fans, Kangana shared, “Kayi tarah ki afwahein ud rahi hain ki humari film Emergency ko censor certificate mil gaya hai. It is not true. In fact, humari film clear ho gayi thi lekin uski certification rok li gayi hai kyuki bohot zyada dhamkiya aa rhi hain jaan se maaar dene ki censor waalo ko (There have been rumors circulating that my film Emergency has been certified by the Censor Board. This is not true. While our film did receive clearance from the CBFC, the certification was delayed due to numerous death threats against members of censor board)."

She asserted that the censor board has demanded the makers to remove pivotal scenes like assassination of Indira Gandhi, Punjab Riots Bhindrewala. She concluded, “I don't know ki fir kya dikhayein ki film achanak se black out ho jaati hai This raises the question - what can I actually show in the film? That the film blacks out all of a sudden.)” In conclusion, the actress-turned-politician shared, “This is unbelievable time for me and I am very sorry for the state of things in this country"

Emergency makers move to Bombay High Court demanding relief from CBFC stay 

On September 4, Zee Entertainment Enterprises moved the Bombay High Court seeking a direction to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to issue a certificate for the film Emergency, helmed by Kangana Ranaut. The court agreed to hear it on Wednesday. Zee Entertainment is the producer of the film.

The petition before the high court claimed that the CBFC has "illegally and arbitrarily" withheld the certification. As per a lawyer, the petition claimed that the Censor board was ready with the certificate, but not issuing it. The plea was mentioned before a division bench of Justices B P Colabawalla and Firdosh Pooniwalla for an urgent hearing. The bench agreed to hear it on Wednesday.

Emergency to skip September 6 release 

Kangana Ranaut’s Emergency film will miss the September 6 scheduled release date, with the Bombay High Court on Wednesday refusing to grant any urgent relief by directing the censor board to certify the movie immediately. A division bench of Justices B P Colabawalla and Firdosh Pooniwalla said it cannot grant any urgent relief at this stage in the wake of the directive issued by the Madhya Pradesh HC directing the censor board to consider objections to the movie before certifying it.
 

The bench accepted the producer’s contention that the certificate was kept ready but not issued and said once the certificate was issued online to the makers of the film, the CBFC’s contention that the certificate was not issued as it was not signed by the chairperson is incorrect. After the HC order, Ranaut took to social media to share her opinion. “High court has blasted censor for illegally withholding the certificate of #emergency,” the actor wrote on X. The court noted that if the Madhya Pradesh HC order was not there, then it would have directed the CBFC to “issue the certificate today itself”. “We know that there is something else happening behind. We don’t want to comment on it. The CBFC shall consider the objections and take a decision by September 18,” it said.

Further updates and a new release date of the movie are awaited. 

(With inputs from agencies)