Kangana Ranaut's controversial film ' Emergency' released in theaters today. Despite SGPC's protest, the film is showing 5 to 10 shows in every city of Punjab. The film has long been mired in controversy, particularly with the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Samiti (SGPC) accusing the film of allegedly distorting historical facts and hurting the sentiments of the Sikh community.
Sikh organizations have started a protest outside PVR cinema today following a call by SGPC. SGPC Chief Harjinder Singh Dhami wrote a letter to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann regarding the film on Thursday. He demanded in the letter that 'Emergency' should be banned in Punjab. Dhami said that the way the film portrays the Sikh community and their struggle during the 1975 crisis does not match historical facts and misrepresents the image of Sikhs.
Dhami also alleged that the film portrayed Sikhs in a negative light, ignoring their sacrifices and historical contributions. He appealed to the government to respect the sentiments of the Sikh community and stop the release of the film in Punjab.
Kangana Ranaut replied
Kangana Ranaut dismissed the allegations and said that her film does not contain anything derogatory towards the Sikh community. He claimed that 'Emergency' was based on historical facts and tried to show the reality during the emergency imposed on the country under the leadership of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
Banned in Bangladesh
The first released trailer of the film showed the era of terrorism in Punjab as well as the era of independence of Bangladesh. Due to which this film has been banned in Bangladesh. The newly released trailer does not show any scenes about terrorism, Operation Blue Star and Jarnail Singh Bhindranwala. Despite this, SGPC demanded to ban the film. In which it was said that the faith of any religious organization was not acquired before the release of the film.
Controversial issues in the film
The film depicts the events of Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi during 1975-77. In particular, it depicts the alleged atrocities on Sikhs, the army's action on the Golden Temple and other controversial incidents. The SGPC says that the film has misrepresented these events.
Government response
There is no official statement from the Punjab government on this issue yet. However, Aam Aadmi Party state president Aman Verma said that no work will be allowed to harm the peace of Punjab.
Controversy started after the first trailer
Besides Sarabjit Singh, an independent MP from Faridkot, Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Samiti (SGPC), the apex body of Sikhs, was the first to object to the film. The film was earlier scheduled to release on 6 September 2024, but was not cleared by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) following protests.
Sarabjit Singh Khalsa, an independent MP from Faridkot and son of Beant Singh, the security guard who assassinated former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi five months ago, objected to the scenes shown in the trailer. He said that there are reports of Sikhs being wrongly portrayed in the film Emergency, due to which the peace and law and order situation in the society is feared to deteriorate.
If the film portrays Sikhs as separatists or terrorists, it will be a big conspiracy. Sarabjit said that 'this film is a psychological attack, which the government should address in advance and stop inciting hatred against Sikhs in other countries.'
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
