Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri has revealed that the producers of his film ‘The Bengal Files’ are considering the legal action. He has alleged that the West Bengal government and the police theater are pressurizing the owners not to showcase the film in the state. The film is based on the communal riots in Kolkata in August 1946, known as Direct Action Day. The film has already been engulfed in controversies, as its trailer launch in the state capital was disrupted and at least two Bengali actors withdrew their names from the project.
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Due to the film ‘The Bengal Files’ not getting any screen in West Bengal, its producer has demanded President Draupadi Murmu to intervene in the case. Meanwhile, Gopal Chandra Mukherjee’s grandson filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court to stop the film’s release, claiming that the main character in the film has been incorrectly depicted. Actress-producer Pallavi Joshi has alleged in an open letter to President Murmu that the cinema owners have told the producers that they were being intimidated and refused to showcase the film for fear of violence by the ruling party workers.
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‘The Bengal Files’ is releasing on September 5. Joshi has written in his letter that the film highlights the prolonged truth of the Hindu massacre of ‘Direct Action Day’, the horrors of Noakhali and the trauma of the division. This letter has been shared by her husband and film director Vivek Agnihotri on the social media platform ‘X’. Agnihotri quoted Joshi as saying that the multiplex series in the state have refused to show the film due to the political pressure and threats of the ruling party.
Joshi wrote in his letter, “Madam Madam, I do not want any favor for a film, but I want to speak for art, truth and mother Bharati’s soul without any fear. You are my last hope. Please protect our constitutional rights and allow ‘The Bengal files’ to be displayed peacefully in West Bengal.”
Director Vivek Agnihotri claimed that the West Bengal government and police officers are threatening the theater owners not to showcase the film. He said that the manufacturers are planning to take legal action. Naveen Chokhani, owner of Navina Theater in South Kolkata, told ‘PTI-Bhasha’ that the theater already has ‘Baghi 4’ and Bengali film ‘Cometu’, so they cannot show a film. He said, “It is not possible for us to show another film.