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<strong>The</strong> International News Weekly india September 21, 2018 | Toronto 11 ‘Manmarizyaan’ cut after protest by Sikh groups; Anurag Kashyap has row with co-producers Three scenes have been deleted, including a scene of a character smoking a cigarette mUMBAI : Director Anurag Kashyap hit out at coproducer and distributor Eros International on Twitter on Thursday over the decision to re-cut portions of his film Manmarziyaan. <strong>The</strong> cuts were made to the version that was released on September 14 after Sikh groups complained that some scenes offended their religious sentiments. Three scenes were deleted: two showing the Sikh characters played by Abhishek Bachchan and Taapsee Pannu smoking cigarettes, and a third of them entering a gurudwara dressed as bride and groom while the bride is thinking of her former boyfriend. Manmarziyaan is set in Amritsar and stars Rumi (Pannu) and Vicky (Vicky Kaushal) as lovers who part after differences. Rumi gets engaged to Robbie (Bachchan), but cannot forget Vicky. After the film’s release, some Sikh groups in North India held protests and filed a complaint with the Jammu district magistrate. “Congratulations. Here by all problems of Punjab are solved and Sikh youth have been saved,” Kashyap tweeted. Kashyap posted the mobile number of Kishore Lulla, the chairperson of Eros International, in his original tweet. He edited the post after being contacted by Twitter’s support team. Manmarziyaan has been produced by Phantom Films, Colour Yellow Productions, which was founded by Tanu Weds Manu director Aanand L Rai, and Eros International. <strong>The</strong> film has fared poorly at the box office, earning barely Rs 20 crores. <strong>The</strong>re have been unverified reports that cinemas in northern states have been cancelling screenings after the protests. A Central Board of Film Certification circular that was posted on Twitter and is dated September 18 details the cuts. Aanand L Rai issued a statement late in the evening, taking responsibility for the post-release excisions. “<strong>The</strong>se cuts were made on a call taken by Colour Yellow Team,’ Rai said in his statement. “I feel we need to understand that this controversy happened after the film has released which leaves the producers and studio extremely vulnerable. Further, If the concept of the film itself was smoking, we would’ve taken a stand like we did for Udta Punjab. “Manmarziyaan is a love story and we believe that these cuts do not compromise with the genre it is. With the limited theatrical shelf life of films these days, we didn’t want the audience waiting to watch this film to suffer and be deprived of a film. My heart goes out to Anurag but In the current situation, we have to be practical.” Eros International too distanced itself from the censorship. <strong>The</strong> studio said in a statement, “Colour Yellow is the creative producer on Manmarziyaan. We have the deepest respect for all communities and it is our intention to maintain neutrality and never intentionally hurt or disrespect any religion or community. We have the greatest respect for the law of the land and follow and implement all guidance of the Censor Board which is the supreme authority for film content in the country.” Lead actress Taapsee Pannu tweeted her displeasure on Thursday over the deletion of the scenes, while Vikramaditya Motwane, a partner at Phantom Films, weighed in too. “This film is not commenting on a community, it talks about individuals and their choices,” he wrote. “Every step of the way, we asked for guidance from Sikh people for the film. When we shot the sequence in Gurudwara, we were told we can’t shoot them getting married as it can’t be faked so we made the actors do only “mattha tekna”.” Kashyap explained that even the scene in which Robbie smokes a cigarette was shot after consulting members of the Sikh community. “We asked before doing the scene and were told that he has to take the Turban off before he smokes away from his house,” Kashyap wrote. “We were also shown how Robbie should take the turban off with both hands and how he should hand it over and how the cousin should take it. Most of the 150 people in the crowd were Sikhs and we were told that’s how it is.” Kashyap apologised for hurting sentiments and argued that deleting the scenes would affect the narrative. His reaction on Thursday suggests that he was blindsided in the debate. “Technology does not allow us to cut a scene and it affects the story telling,” Kashyap said on Wednesday. “So I definitely cannot do that now. To those whose hurt is genuine, I offer a genuine apology, that wasn’t my intention. And for those who are doing it for attention, I am glad you have got the attention.” Centre, states working to take GDP to $5 tn by 2022: Modi New Delhi : <strong>The</strong> size of the Indian economy will double to $5 trillion by 2022 with manufacturing and agriculture contributing $1 trillion each, and the various states are competing with each other to help achieve this goal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday. In his address at the foundation laying ceremony of the India International Convention and Expo Centre here, Modi said that towards achieving this target, the government is making all efforts to increase the share of exports to 40 per cent of the country's GDP. "<strong>The</strong> country's macroeconomic fundamentals are strong, and all efforts are being made by various agencies to increase the share of exports to 40 per cent of the GDP," he said. "We plan to increase our GDP to $5 trillion by 2022 in which manufacturing and agriculture would contribute $1 trillion each. "<strong>The</strong> states are also together in this endeavour and are competing with each other on the ease of doing business rankings," he said. <strong>The</strong> high rate of India's GDP growth in recent years had resulted in a massive employment generation, particularly in the IT, retail and toursim sectors, he added Referring to government's proposal made on Tuesday of the merger of Dena Bank, Vijaya Bank and Bank of Baroda to create the country's third largest banking entity, the Prime Minister said that his administration had brought in bank consolidation which was being debated over a long time. "<strong>The</strong> need for having dozens of governmentrun banks was being debated for a long time but we have acted on it. This government will not shy away from taking tough decisions in the national interest," he said, citing the rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) among such measures taken by the government. Iran sanctions: India in touch with all stakeholders New Delhi : Following fresh US sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme that puts the strategic Chabahar port in jeopardy and calls for a complete stop to all Iranian oil exports, India is in touch with all stakeholders in the matter, the External Affairs Ministry said on Thursday. "We are very closely monitoring the developments and assessing their implications," ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in a media briefing here. "We are in touch with all stakeholders in the matter," Kumar said. <strong>The</strong> sanctions on Tehran that will come into effect in November have jeopardised the Chabahar port project in Iran, being jointly developed by India, Iran and Afghanistan. <strong>The</strong> port facilitates access to Afghanistan by bypassing Pakistan and is also a vital link in the International North- South Transport Corridor. "Chabahar is a very important project for us not only for access to Afghanistan and Central Asia but also for Afghanistan itself for our own developmental assistance and developmental programmes in Afghanistan," Kumar said. He said that the matter figured in the discussions during the first ever India- US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi on September 6 in which External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Jim Mattis participated. "I can say that these discussions have led to a better understanding by the US of our objectives, concerns, sensitivities and expectations," the spokesperson said. Also, with the new US fresh sanctions, there have been concerns in New Delhi as India is heavily reliant on Iran for crude oil imports. "We, of course, will continue to work with the United States and other stakeholders to ensure our energy security and also our national interests," Kumar said. Earlier this month, briefing the media about the 2+2 Dialogue, a senior US State Department official said that there has been expert-level discussions between India and the US on issues related to crude oil exports from Iran and ways to bring those exports down.
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