HYDERABAD: Md Ali Shabbir, adviser to the state government, on Friday said that Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has assured the Sikh community that his administration would consider banning the release of the film “Emergency”, produced and directed by Kangana Ranaut, pending legal consultation.
Shabbir spoke to media after Telangana Sikh Society (TSS) representatives, along with members of the Prabandhak Committees of Sikh Gurdwaras, submitted representations to the government to impose an immediate ban on the movie to be released next month.
TSS representatives, led by the society’s president Tejdeep Kaur Menon, said that the film is a clear bid to create a narrative against the community. The TSS also submitted representations to the minister for cinematography, Hyderabad police commissioner and others.
The TSS said that the film “deliberately misrepresents” Sikhs as separatists as part of a deep conspiracy. “The community can never forget the anti-Sikh brutality of June 1984 and Ranaut’s film is aimed at character assassination. Even in the past, there have been several instances when Sikh sentiments were hurt due to the misrepresentation of the community in films,” the TSS said.
The delegation said that the Sikh community, which makes up 2% of Telangana’s population and has a sizable presence in India’s Armed forces, is particularly distressed. The delegation highlighted that nearly 12% of the nation’s military forces comprise Sikhs, many of whom have sacrificed their lives in the line of duty to protect the country. They conveyed the anger, especially among the Sikh youth, over the film’s promotional material.
Central Gurudwara Sahib, Gowliguda, president S Inder Singh urged the authorities to take action against Kangana “for inciting religious sentiments of Sikhs through her film. He also demanded the filmmakers to tender an apology to the Sikh community for the misrepresentation. He explained that after the release of the film’s trailer, numerous “anti-Sikh scenes” were identified, which have deeply offended the Sikh community.