Filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali finds himself in another legal deadlock with his upcoming movie Gangubai Kathiawadi. The Supreme Court has suggested changing the name of the movie, two days before the release.
The movie is scheduled to get released on the coming Friday. This suggestion came in light of numerous pending cases in the court that are requesting to halt the release. Siddhartha Dave, the lawyer for Bhansali Productions, informed the top court that he will seek directions on the suggestion made by the court from his client.
Several cases are pending with the court on this movie which shows the portrayal of a real-life sex worker who rose to political prominence. Among the filers, one of them is Gangubai’s adopted son- Babu Ravji Shah. The film has been adapted from Hussain Zaidi’s book- Mafia Queens of Mumbai. Babu Ravji Shah alleged that the picture is defamatory towards his mother.
The Bombay High Court, which ordered a stay on the release of the film, has been challenged by Shah. As reported by the news agency Asian News Agency (ANI), there are a bunch of complaints filed against Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film, including one by Maharashtra MLA Amin Patel and Kamathipura resident Shraddha Surve.
The Bombay High Court has dissolved three petitions that have been filed seeking the deletion of the words ‘Kamathipura’, ‘Kathiawadi’ and ‘China’ from the Hindi movie ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’.
A division bench, that consists of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice M S Karnik was hearing two public interest litigations (PILs) – filed by city MLA Amin Patel and one Hiten Mehta – and another petition submitted by Shraddha Surve, a resident of the Kamathipura area in south Mumbai
The actors of the film are under scrutiny as well in light of the legal actions. The lead role is executed by Alia Bhatt, who enacts the character of Ganga Harjivandas, also known as Gangubai Kathiawadi.
Other actors who are a part of this movie are- Shantanu Maheshwari, who plays the role of Ramnik Lal (Husband of Ganga), Vijay Raaz, who plays the role of Raziabai, Indira Tiwari, Seema Pahwa, Varun Kapoor, and Jim Sarbh.
Apart from these characters, we have cameos played by Ajay Devgn, who plays the role of Karim Lala, the sworn brother of Gangubai, and Huma Quereshi, who plays the role of Dilruba, are yet to comment on this controversial row.
As the protagonist of the film, Alia Bhatt told ANI that the controversy about the film does not affect her.
“Neither any controversy nor any comment bothers me. I don’t think anything bothers me beyond a point. Of course, I feel like there’s a certain novelty that just a part of a film holds…whether the film is a good film or a bad film… that doesn’t matter. The audience makes their final decision only after watching the film… nothing that happens before or after can change the fate.”
-Alia Bhatt in conversation with ANI.
If Sanjay Lella Bhansali decides to accept the court’s decision and Gangubai Kathiawadi is subjected to a name change then it will be the latest in other films by Sanjay Leela Bhansali to be released with a different title after Goliyon Ka Raasleela Ram-Leela and Padmaavat.
Published By: Khushboo Mehta
