C'garh CM watches 'Chhapaak', defends Deepika Padukone's JNU visit

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Saturday watched Deepika Padukone starrer 'Chhapaak' accompanied by several cabinet colleagues. They watched the 3-6pm show at Shyam Talkies here. Slamming those calling for a boycott of the movie because of Padukone's visit to JNU to express solidarity with students after the January 5 violence, Baghel said, "Those who are pro-Hitler (possibly a reference to BJP) cannot tolerate dissent."

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"What is happening in this country? Is there any place for dissent? There is no place for disagreement and they can go to any extent. Deepika Padukone is an artiste. She just went and stood there (in JNU) did not speak a single word but she is being targeted. You can see to which level they can go to harm those opposing them," he said.

He said the question was not about an artiste but of the incidents (depicted in the movie) that are occurring in society. "The important thing is what kind of lessons a society learns from such incidents," he said. Taking a swipe at the BJP-RSS, he said, "If anyone raises a voice against injustice, you cannot tolerate them and troll them. It shows your mentality." He said the BJP government at the Centre could go to any extent to suppress dissent adding it was using CBI, ED, IT against those raising a voice against the ruling dispensation.

Praising the film, Baghel said it depicted the struggle of an acid attack survivor very well. The Chhattisgarh government has declared the film tax-free.

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Ajay beats Deepika 

As per trade analyst Taran Adarsh, Deepika Padukone’s Chhapaak earned Rs 4.77 crore on Friday. Ajay Devgn’s Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, meanwhile, minted Rs 15.10 crore on the opening day. It'd be interesting to see how the collections take a turn over the next few days.

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