Mumbai, July 30: Just a few weeks before its release, Vishal Bhardwaj’s KAMINEY is in trouble, and ironically the problem stems from his own state of Uttar Pradesh. A Samajwadi Party MP, Ramanarian Sahu, president of the Rashtriya Teli Rathore Chetna Mahasangh has objected to a line -”Kahan Raja Bhoj, Kahan Gangu Teli” in Gulzar’s lyrics.
The MP has written to the Information & Broadcasting minister, Ambika Soni, alleging that the use of word ‘teli’ (oil expellers) in the ”Dhan-Te-Nan” song is derogatory to the community. The minister has forwarded the letter to the CBFC in order to seek explanation. And the CBFC chairperson, Sharmila Tagore has suggested that the lyricist Gulzar work out the issue with the people objecting to the line, since the CBFC has already cleared the film.
KAMINEY under censor scanner
Quite a messed up situation, one that reminds us of the time when Madhuri Dixit’s comeback vehicle, Yash Raj’s AAJA NACHLE, was subjected to the same during the time of release. People had objected to a line from a song in AAJA NACHLE referring to the cobbler community, and the repercussion was so huge that the screening of the film had to be stopped in most of Uttar Pradesh and some parts of Madhya Pradesh.
Since there is still a lot of time (KAMINEY releases on August 14), we sincerely hope that Vishal and Gulzar will work out the issue with the concerned party and that the film, which is one of the most anticipated releases of the year, sees a successful free run at the ticket window, and the audience gets to see the expected marvel called KAMINEY.
—Agencies