Pratik Gandhi and Patralekha as Mahatma Phule and Savitribhai Phule, respectively.

Starring Pratik Gandhi and Patralekha as Mahatma Phule and Savitribhai Phule, respectively, Phule has been embroiled in a controversy with the Censor Board. After Brahmin Federation President Anand Dave alleged that the film, directed by Ananth Mahadevan, promotes casteism, the Censor Board has cut scenes of discrimination crucial to retell the social reformers’ story.

Dave claimed that the contributions of the Brahmin community should be depicted in the film, which he claims is a “one-sided” storyline and therefore not inclusive.

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Nationalist Congress Party Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) MLA Jitendra Awhad responded to Dave’s claims and stated, “Whatever is being shown in the movie Mahatma Jyotirao Phule is a historical truth; the truth cannot be changed by denying it.”

He alleged that pressure was being put on filmmakers to exclude the “truth” from the film. “Filmmakers should not succumb to this pressure. What is true must be brought to the world. Those who helped the Phule couple should also be mentioned. So, no matter what caste or religion they belong to; there should be no opposition to them either. History cannot be changed. However, society moves forward only by correcting the mistakes in history,” he stated in an X post.

Initially set to release on April 11, the film will now be released on April 25.

The proposed changes:

• Disclaimer length increased up to a readable time.
• Visuals of “Man carrying broom” replaced “Boys throwing cow dung bolls Savitri Bai”
• Dialogue “3000 sal purani…gulami” modified to “Kai saal purani hain”
• Dialogue “Peshvai asti tar…hath pair alag karva dethe,” modified to “Nasib accha tha rajeshahi hoti na… hath pair alag kar dethe tumhare.”
• Replaced the words “mang”, “mahar”, and “aise choti choti”
• The entire voiceover stanza about the caste system of Manu Maharaj has been replaced. “Aabadi hain aabad… aur unka jivan sarthak hoga” to “Aabadi hai aabad nahi… azhadi ki”
• Deleted dialogue of “Yaha 3 M hai… aur hum vahi karne ja rahe hain”
• Sub-titles changed from “Caste” to “Varna”.

In the upcoming film PHULE, a biopic of Jyotibai Phule, the Censor Board in India removed depictions of the very discrimination she fought. #CBFCWatch pic.twitter.com/bCCLMebQw5

— Aroon Deep (@AroonDeep) April 9, 2025

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Director Ananth Mahadevan revealed that the makers had received letters and notices from different Brahmin organisations including Akhil Bhartiya Brahmin Samaj and Parshuram Aarthik Vikas Mahamandal. While Mahadevan clarified that the film shows the help Phule received from the Brahmin community, he doesn’t intend to show Phule to them before its release.

“It’ll look as if we are justifying the film. You justify something if you’re guilty. They can see the film when it releases,” he said as quoted by Times Now News.

Written by Ananth and Muazzam Beg, the film follows the story of Mahatma Jyotirao Phule and his wife Savitribai Phule who fought casteism in the 19th century. With a new release date set, Phule will now clash with Emraan Hashmi’s Ground Zero at the box office.