Ah, there they go again!
Sometime last week, Youth Congress workers in Indore, took to the streets and staged a protest against the movie 'Lage Raho Munnabhai' by burning posters. They have demanded a ban on the film, alleging that the whole concept of 'Gandhigiri' is disrespectful to the teaching and philosophy of Gandhi. "People misuse Gandhi's message and teachings all the time and interpret his philosophy according to their own whims and fancies'', said an NSUI activist. Apparently, Gandhi's granddaughter was very dissatisfied with the film, and this led to the agitation.
Well, I'm not a great fan of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, but I do admire some of the man's principles. I watched the film last night, and realised why I hadn't met a single soul who'd said it was bad. At the outset, you'd think the plot sounded very preachy and documentarial, but having watched "Munnabhai M.B.B.S", I was quite sure Rajkumar Hirani would do a good job. It was the simplicity of the film which fascinated me, considering it involved the juxtaposition of Gandhi's ideologies with a light-hearted entertainer. To sum it up, MINDBLOWING!
Coming back to the protests, it is simply amazing how political parties rush to the forefront with remarkable consistency just to blow miniscule issues out of proportion. It happened a few months ago, when Aamir Khan lent his voice in support of the farmers displaced due to the Sardar Sarovar dam construction. A bunch of hoodlums, hired by the Youth Congress and B.J.P members started burning effigies of the star and did not allow the screening of "Fanaa" in Gujarat. But the responsible actor stuck to his guns, and "Fanaa" turned out to become a blockbuster. The most amusing part is that "Lage Raho Munnabhai" is a pro-Gandhi package. Gandhi's granddaughter has every right to express her opinion, but the fact remains that 99% of people who've seen the movie have simply loved it. There's no fault of her's, but its these publicity stunts by the parties that are disgusting. The protests against the film are in no way going to affect the film's business, but the attitude of the Politicos calls for concern.
It is highly shameful that a bunch of pseudo-nationalist jokers are allowed to get away with this, especially when there are many more issues to be worried about. People are shot dead in restaurants, sanitation still remains a problem in most cities, but our friends don't say a word. How convenient, indeed! I think its just a matter of time before the Censor Board will be done away with and replaced with agitation-loving political party workers. Like Munna tells Circuit towards the end of the film, "Achcha hua, Bapu sach mein nahin hain. Agar hote, toh desh ka yeh haal dekhkar ro padte."
Sometime last week, Youth Congress workers in Indore, took to the streets and staged a protest against the movie 'Lage Raho Munnabhai' by burning posters. They have demanded a ban on the film, alleging that the whole concept of 'Gandhigiri' is disrespectful to the teaching and philosophy of Gandhi. "People misuse Gandhi's message and teachings all the time and interpret his philosophy according to their own whims and fancies'', said an NSUI activist. Apparently, Gandhi's granddaughter was very dissatisfied with the film, and this led to the agitation.
Well, I'm not a great fan of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, but I do admire some of the man's principles. I watched the film last night, and realised why I hadn't met a single soul who'd said it was bad. At the outset, you'd think the plot sounded very preachy and documentarial, but having watched "Munnabhai M.B.B.S", I was quite sure Rajkumar Hirani would do a good job. It was the simplicity of the film which fascinated me, considering it involved the juxtaposition of Gandhi's ideologies with a light-hearted entertainer. To sum it up, MINDBLOWING!
Coming back to the protests, it is simply amazing how political parties rush to the forefront with remarkable consistency just to blow miniscule issues out of proportion. It happened a few months ago, when Aamir Khan lent his voice in support of the farmers displaced due to the Sardar Sarovar dam construction. A bunch of hoodlums, hired by the Youth Congress and B.J.P members started burning effigies of the star and did not allow the screening of "Fanaa" in Gujarat. But the responsible actor stuck to his guns, and "Fanaa" turned out to become a blockbuster. The most amusing part is that "Lage Raho Munnabhai" is a pro-Gandhi package. Gandhi's granddaughter has every right to express her opinion, but the fact remains that 99% of people who've seen the movie have simply loved it. There's no fault of her's, but its these publicity stunts by the parties that are disgusting. The protests against the film are in no way going to affect the film's business, but the attitude of the Politicos calls for concern.
It is highly shameful that a bunch of pseudo-nationalist jokers are allowed to get away with this, especially when there are many more issues to be worried about. People are shot dead in restaurants, sanitation still remains a problem in most cities, but our friends don't say a word. How convenient, indeed! I think its just a matter of time before the Censor Board will be done away with and replaced with agitation-loving political party workers. Like Munna tells Circuit towards the end of the film, "Achcha hua, Bapu sach mein nahin hain. Agar hote, toh desh ka yeh haal dekhkar ro padte."
posted by Varun at 11:28 AM
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