'Adipurush': Kathmandu mayor terms Nepal Court 'Indian slave' after ban-upliftment
On Thursday, a Nepal court cleared the way for Adipurush's release and asked the country's theaters to not stop the screening of any film that has been passed by the censor board. Earlier, Nepal had banned all Indian films briefly following the uproar over one dialogue that called Janaki "India's daughter." Now, Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah has refused to comply with the judicial order.
'The Court and the Government are slaves of India'
Shah expressed his frustration on Facebook, "The film's writer said that Nepal was under India, this shows India's ill intention. To term this as a stunt by the Nepal government and to issue an order by the court in favor of [the movie] means to accept that Nepal was once under India's rule; the court and the government are both the slaves of India."
Shah is ready for any possible punishment
Shah further added that he will "not abide by the court's order" and wrote, "I am ready to face any punishment for this but the movie won't work and won't be allowed to run." To put things into perspective, the Nepalese people believe that Janaki/Sita was born in Janakpur, which is in present-day Southeast Nepal, thus making her Nepal's daughter, not India's.
'Adipurush's dialogues have ignited massive controversy
Adipurush's dialogues have been under the radar ever since the Om Raut directorial was released on June 16. People were offended by the "cheapjack" statements spoken by the central characters, and several Hindu devotees also took to the streets demanding a ban on the mythological epic. Writer Manoj Muntashir Shukla changed the dialogues after the uproar and the revised version is now playing theatrically.
'Adipurush': Cast, budget, and recent updates
The film boasts an Rs. 500cr budget and stars Prabhas as Raghav, Kriti Sanon as Janaki, and Saif Ali Khan as Lankesh. Though it took a thunderous start at the box office, it received overwhelmingly negative reviews, with Shukla bearing the maximum brunt of the criticism. Recently, he was granted protection by the Mumbai Police after the matter aggravated and he received threats.
