Stir against Marathi film on Shivaji enters Day 2, NCP leader booked

Protests against the Marathi historical action film Har Har Mahadev over alleged "distortion of facts" continued on the second day in a row on Tuesday in Maharashtra with activists of Nationalist Congress Party and an organisation founded by Sambhaji Chhatrapati, a descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, disrupting the screening at a multiplex in Nashik city.

An agitation was also held against the movie at another multiplex in the north Maharashtra city by the Nationalist Youth Congress. 

Earlier in the day, the Thane police registered a case against senior Nationalist Congress Party leader and former Maharashtra minister Jitendra Awhad and at least 100 others for allegedly roughing up spectators at a multiplex screening Har Har Mahadev on Monday night.

Awhad and his supporters had allegedly gatecrashed into the multiplex in Thane city and disrupted the show over the alleged "distortion of history".

According to the complaint lodged against Awhad, when spectators demanded a refund and passed comments regarding the disruption, he and his supporters roughed up some of them.

No arrest is made so far and the investigation is underway, the official said.

A case has been registered against Awhad on the complaint of a spectator under various sections of the Indian Penal Code pertaining to unlawful assembly and sections 323 (Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 504 ( Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), and the Maharashtra Police Act.

After the disruption, the show was resumed by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena activists.

Speaking on the issue, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said beating up movie-goers for watching 'Har Har Mahadev' will not be tolerated and action will be taken against people involved in such incidents.

Fadnavis said people could have expressed their opposition democratically.

“People are permitted to register their opposition democratically. I have not seen the movie and I am not aware of the controversy,” he said.

BJP's Maharashtra women's wing chief Chitra Wagh said, “If Awhad has not realised that he is no longer in power, the law should make him realise it".

Earlier in the day, activists of Swarajya Sanghatana disrupted the screening of "Har Har Mahadev" at a multiplex in Nashik.

Swarajya Sanghatana was founded by former Rajya Sabha MP Sambhaji Chhatrapati who had expressed his displeasure over Har Har Mahadev and Vedat Marathe Veer Daudale Saat (an upcoming movie project), saying he would oppose upcoming movies based on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj if they distort facts.

Activists of Sanghatana reached the multiplex located on the Nashik-Pune highway and forced the management to stop the screening of the movie. They shouted slogans and warned the multiplex management to face consequences if the movie is screened again, a local leader said.

“The movie 'Har Har Mahadev' has distorted many facts. Swarajya Sanghatana chief Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje has taken serious cognizance. Such movies will not be tolerated in the state in future. If these tendencies will not be curbed in time, the future generations will permanently forget the real history of Marathas,” Swarajya Sanghatana state convener Ganesh Kadam said on the occasion.

At another protest, a local Nationalist Youth Congress leader said the movie should not be allowed to be screened as it depicted the "wrong" history of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj who is the idol of Maharashtra.

A day earlier, the screening of Har Har Mahadev was disrupted by members of the Sambhaji Brigade, a Maratha outfit, in Pune.

Released on October 25, Har Har Mahadev is a Marathi-language epic historical action drama film written and directed by Abhijeet Deshpande. It stars Subodh Bhave as Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Sharad Kelkar as Baji Prabhu Deshpande in the lead.

The film is about the inspiring story of Baji Prabhu Deshpande, a general of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj who, along with his army of 300 soldiers, fought with 12,000 Bijapuri soldiers.