The controversial film The Kerala Story was banned by the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal before Supreme Court issued a stay order to ensure that the film is screened in the state. Multiple celebrities shared their opinions on this move, but the ones shared by Nawazuddin Siddiqui gained wide attention.
In an interview with News18 earlier this week, while reacting to his Gangs of Wasseypur director Anurag Kashyap's stance of not being in favour of a ban over any film, Nawaz said, "I agree with him. But if a film or a novel is hurting someone, then that’s wrong. We don’t make films to hurt the audience or their sentiments. We make films to foster social harmony and love among people. It’s our responsibility to propagate the same. Nothing in this world deserves to be banned. But if a film has the power to break people and social harmony, it’s extremely wrong."
His words were misconstrued and some media reports mentioned that The Lunchbox actor had supported The Kerala Story ban. On Friday, May 26, the actor had to issue a statement on his Twitter handle in which he clarified that he would never want any film to be banned. "Please stop spreading false news just to get some views and hits, it’s called cheap TRP - I never said and I would never want any film to be banned ever. STOP BANNING FILMS. STOP SPREADING FAKE NEWS!!", his tweet read.
Even after Nawazuddin had explained himself, filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri shared a portal's tweet that read, "If a novel or a film is hurting someone, then it is wrong: Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui supports calls to ban the movie The Kerala Story", and wrote, "Most Indian middle-class families feel unnecessary abuse, violence and perversion in movies and OTT shows hurt them and their children… Nawaz can suggest whether most of his films and OTT shows should be banned? What are your views?". The Kashmir Files director later deleted his tweet.
Meanwhile, Nawazuddin's latest film Jogira Sara Ra Ra was released in theatres this Friday. The Hindi romantic comedy stars Neha Sharma as the leading lady and is directed by Kushan Nandy. As per the early estimates from the entertainment tracking portal Sacnilk.com, the film has collected only Rs 40 lakh on its opening day.
READ | Meet The Kerala Story producer Vipul Shah, who has directed Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra, A-listers
