Everything You Need To Know About Kangana Ranaut’s ‘Emergency’ Controversy (image-instagram/ kanganaranaut)

Actor and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Kangana Ranaut’s maiden solo directorial has been caught up in a churn of controversies for some time now. The film starring Kangana in the lead role was earlier scheduled for a release last year.

The Sikh organisation objected to its release and accused the filmmakers of misrepresenting the community and twisting historical facts. The actress has said that the movie was put on hold after its members received death threats.

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Kangana’s Emergency is based on the life of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It has been pushed from its release on September 6.  Produced by Zee Studios and Manikarnika Films, the movie is set against the backdrop of one of India’s most tumultuous political periods.

However, with the film waiting for the Censor nod, it is unsure when will the movie hit theaters.

Here are the recent developments in the issue:

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), an apex body managing Sikh religious institutions, has sent a legal notice to the film’s producers.

They have alleged that the movie misrepresents Sikhs and historical facts. Soon after the film’s trailer was released, Akal Takht and SGPC demanded an immediate ban on the movie.

SGPC secretary has said that they have written to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the CBFC, seeking a ban on the film.

He said that the trailer had “anti-Sikh” scenes and this has “deeply hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community,” he said.

Gurcharan Singh Grewal, general secretary of SGPC, while speaking to ANI said that it is good that the Censor Board has halted the film’s release. “The matter pertains to not just Sikhs, but also concerns of harmony in the country”.

As of now, the co-producer of the film, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, has approached the Bombay High Court seeking direction to issue the clearance certificate to ‘Emergency’.

The petition has accused the Censor board of “illegally and arbitrarily” withholding the film’s certification. The court is hearing the matter.

“The maker of the film is a sitting MP. They gave her a censor certificate and could have simply said, look we have given the censor certificate and now if there is unrest, the State can take care of the same. They cannot say that now that there is unrest, we will rethink the certification,” Zee told the court.

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“CBFC is a censor body and not an authority to look after the law-and-order situation in the state,” they added.

Responding to the ongoing quarrel, the actor-filmmaker said there is “pressure on us not to depict the assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi, Bhindrawale, and the Punjab riots in the film”.

“This raises the question – what can we actually show in the film? That the film blacks out all of a sudden?,” Kangana further asks.