BENGALURU: The New Year revelry in Bengaluru will be anything but ‘Sunny’ this 31st. For, the city will miss the oomph factor as permission for an event featuring Sunny Leone was denied following protests by some pro-Kannada outfits.
The naysayers' stand: Allowing her to perform in the city would corrupt the mind of the youth. A moot point, perhaps, given that modern youth do not need a Sunny Leone performance to corrupt their mind.
The opposition, evidently, seems to have nothing to do with what Sunny Leone may have worn during her performance, but more to do with Sunny Leone herself.
“The protest is not against Sunny Leone or girls performing, but we are concerned that our culture must be protected. Considering her background and that the organisers are holding this event with the intent of selling tickets, we are not convinced that the event will be a cultural one,” said Anjana Gowda, vice-president of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV), the pro-Kannada organisation. Clearly, the issue is Leone's background.
The advertisement banner of the event had featured Sunny Leone, Progressive Brothers, Vilas Monnappa and Kannada Rappers All OK, with suggestive taglines ‘Sunny Nights in Bengaluru’ and ‘Witness the Hottest Party’.
Anjana Gowda said people will go to the event keeping Sunny Leone’s background in mind. “The organisers want to make money out of this and it is clear by their advertising. Let them hold a cultural programme instead,” he said.
Earlier, objections were also raised by Karave Yuva Sena, an offshoot of KRV, on the kind of clothes Sunny Leone would be wearing at the event. A suggestion was made to invite Kannada actors or ask women, who would be performing in the city, to “wear sarees”.
However, M S Harish, managing director of advertising firm ‘The Time Creations’, which is organising the event, trashed the allegations of impropriety, saying it's ‘a result of their (pro-Kannada organisation) imagination'. "I'm a Kannadiga and I know my culture. It's a family programme... I would strategise the event within the parameters of my culture,” he claimed.
"It's clearly mentioned in the agreement that Sunny Leone would be performing a Kannada song and would be dressed accordingly. I myself do not have a clue on what costume the actress had planned for the event and these protesters just let their imagination run riot," he added.
H S Bhavya, wife of Harish, had moved the Karnataka High Court as the government had on December 15 disallowed the show after protests by the pro-Kannada outfits.
In her petition, Bhavya claimed that home minister Ramalinga Reddy made a public statement expressing his ‘dislike’ over the event. “Followed by the baseless and mischievous protests, the HM of the state also appears to have made informal public statements disliking the grant of permission to actress Sunny Leone’s event though quoting no justifiable reasons than personal opinions,” her petition said.
The proprietor of the Time Creations had in the petition claimed that prior to the protests, the police had assured them of granting permission for the event. The organisers alleged that on December 16, the police had orally refused permission, but failed to give it in writing.
“I went and showed the promotional video of the event to the deputy commissioner of police of the appropriate area, explaining the kind of programme we were organising. I tried to convince him but he himself said there’s pressure from his superiors that the programme be postponed. Later, I went to court to ask if they had given permission to any such event earlier. In that case, my programme should also be considered," Harish said.
Subsequently, when the orders refusing permission came in writing after the HC stepped in, the Time Creations sought to postpone the event to February next year.
The overall expenditure on the event is estimated to be around Rs 1.5 crore and postponing it by a month would cost organisers a loss of Rs 8-10 lakh.
The KRV said a protest will again be organised if Sunny Leone is a part of the event. “We will definitely protest if the event is held in February. The organisers have met us and we have told them that we want the programme to be culturally sound. They have promised to share details of the event and we will take a call based on it,” Anjana Gowda said.
On whether they would have staged a protest if other actresses like Bipasha Basu had performed in the event, Anjana Gowda said, “Bipasha is not a porn star, she comes from an acting background. Let me again say that we are not against performers, but there is a mindset that people will have when they go to this event. Even if Sunny Leone comes to Bengaluru in February, we will not lay a hand on her, but our right to protest cannot be ignored.”
A tweet on Sunny Leone’s official handle said, “Since the police of Bangalore have publicly said that they will not be able to ensure mine & all who attend safety for my New Year's event, my team & I feel, safety of the people should always come first, therefore, I cannot attend. God bless & I wish everyone a safe & happy New Year!”
“To all those who protested and to all those who supported, always remember, never allow others to speak and choose for you. Have your own voice and make your own choices. You are the youth and you are the NEW INDIA! Stand Proud and Stand together. I love you all dearly!” read a subsequent tweet by Leone.
In a reply to a tweet which read: “I still fail to understand how @SunnyLeone is different from other Bollywood actresses. So much hypocrisy,” Leone said, “I am not.”
The city had found itself in limelight on December 31, 2016 after what the media called 'mass molestation' took place on MG Road and Brigade Road. The incident drew a lot of criticism for the mismanagement of the situation. Taking lessons from the incidents, the city police has decided to deploy around 15,000 police personnel on this New Year's-eve against 1,500 deployed last year.
(With inputs from Avinash Bhat)
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