BJP leader lashes out against 'Pathaan'; says "will not be allowed in Maharashtra"

Mumbai: The upcoming Shah Rukh Khan-Deepika Padukone film "Pathaan" is "insulting towards Hindutva," according to a leader of the ruling BJP in Maharashtra, who made the same claim after the Madhya Pradesh government. He stated that it "will not be allowed." The use of the "sacred colour saffron" for Deepika Padukone's "vulgar" bikini in "Besharam Rang," a song published as part of the marketing before next month's release, is seen by Hindutva activists and BJP leaders as having a communal undertone.

Ram Kadam, a Maharashtra BJP MLA, even hinted in tweets today at Deepika Padukone's support for some Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students in Delhi in 2020 after they were attacked by a mob that was allegedly backed by the ruling BJP and other RSS affiliates. The JNU students were allegedly attacked by a mob in Delhi in 2020.

"JNU-dhaari" (people standing with JNU) are hurting the sentiments of the "janeu-dhaari" (Hindus who wear the sacred Brahmin thread), he said, in tweets in Hindi and Marathi, NDTV reported.

"Any film or serial that insults Hindutva will not be allowed in Maharashtra," he added, signing off with "Jai Sri Ram".

He demanded that the film's producer and director explain themselves in front of the "saints, mahatmas, Hindus organisations, and crores of people on social media" who have been protesting the movie because Maharashtra, the state that is home to the Hindi film industry, has a "government with Hindutva ideology."

Many protesters, including BJP leaders, have accused the Muslim actor and Hindu actress of engaging in "love jihad," citing their "saffron" and "green" costumes in the song "Besharam Rang" as evidence. They have demanded a boycott of the film or possibly the entire Bollywood industry.

While there have been demonstrations in locations like Indore, Madhya Pradesh, where Shah Rukh Khan's effigies were burned, the film's creators have remained silent. Speaking on Thursday in Kolkata about online toxicity, Shah Rukh Khan did seem to address it saying, "The collective narrative of our times is shaped by social media. Contrary to the belief that social media will affect cinema negatively, I believe cinema has an even more important role to play now."

The criticism of "Pathaan" coincides with similar rallies against Aamir Khan films, whose remarks about the socio-political environment and about Prime Minister Narendra Modi in interviews from a decade ago are frequently used to label him "anti-national." Allegations that Deepika Padukone's 2018 film "Padmaavat" was "anti-Rajput" and "anti-Hindu" also sparked demonstrations.

Raees director defends SRK against 'hate attacks'

Calls to boycott Pathaan have been circulating on social media since the first song from the movie, Besharam Rang, appeared online earlier this week. Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone, the stars of the movie, have drawn a lot of this hate, and many people in the movie business have defended the movie and its performers. The director of the SRK-starring film Raees, Rahul Dholakia, defended the actor on Twitter on Friday, telling "bigots with idiotic theories" to "shut up."

Rahul urged other members of the film community to come out against the hate attack directed at the Swades actor. His tweet read, "The hate attack (for years now) on @iamsrk should be condemned by one and all in the film industry. SRK has contributed more to our fraternity and India as an ambassador of entertainment & cinema; than most people have. Please tell these bigots with idiotic theories to Shut Up!"

Previously, actor Prakash Raj had also called out the "andh bhakts" who had been commenting on the colours of SRK and Deepika's costumes in the song. He wrote, "Disgusting … How long should we tolerate these ..Colour Blind #AndhBhakts .. #justasking."

Additionally using Instagram stories, actor Swara Bhasker talked about the BJP minister who had taken issue with Deepika's attire in the song. She wrote, "Miliye humare desh ke sattadhari netaon se. Abhinetriyon ke kapde dekhne se fursat milti, toh kya pata kuch kar bhi lete (Meet our country's appointed leaders. They may have done some work, had they had some time left after oggling at female actor's costumes.)", Indian Express reported.

Filmmaker Onir also used Twitter to reply to a fan who made a comment about Ranveer Singh on the platform. The user, whose Twitter handle claims that they are a retired IPS officer, read, "What kind of a husband allows or tolerates public molestation of his wife for a few bucks? Just asking!!!" Onir responded, "Yucks .., sick mentality . Use of words like " allows" and " tolerate" shows that he belongs to that tribe of men who think a husband owns the women. And only a vulgar mindset could make a montage like this. Retired and now nothing better to do than zoom in pics n spread hate."

At the Kolkata International Film Festival's opening ceremony, Shah Rukh Khan addressed the hostility on social media, "I read somewhere negativity increases social media consumption and thereby increases its commercial value as well. Such pursuits enclose the collective narrative, making it divisive and destructive." He added, "No matter what the world does, people like us will stay positive."