Panaji, April 22: Women’s group ‘Goenchea Ostoreachcho Awaz’ (GOA) staged a peaceful protest outside Inox theatre protesting the preview of the controversial film ‘Dum Maro Dum’, on Thursday evening.
All four screenings happened amid tight security cover, which went on smoothly till the last show at 11:15 pm.
The group led by Swati Kerkar voiced concern over the portrayal of the film and demanded that the government stop the paid preview of the film on Thursday and all further scheduled screenings.
In their memorandum to the chief minister, the group has said that the special committee should review the film for content and malice, and further direct the Censor Board to censor the film for any objectionable remarks against Goa and Goan women.
District Collector Mihir Vardhan along with his family was amongst the audiences, who attended the first screening of the movie.
The women activists accused the government of promoting offensive portrayal of Goan women in the movie.
“We are here to create awareness. It is for the people to decide whether to watch the movie or not. We are upset that the state government has miserably failed to stop the movie,” Kerkar said.
The activists raised apprehensions that rowdy and wrong-minded tourists might be attracted towards Goa, which is known for its warm hospitality.
“How can the movie makers make offensive statement? It is against the women’s dignity. Not just the objectionable dialogues but the movie overall should be banned,” Kerkar said further.
The activists argued that Goan women are decently dressed and are not into any anti-social activities, as the movie makers portray in the movies including Dum Maro Dum.
They admitted that after the High Court’s verdict giving a go-ahead for the movie release, they are ‘powerless’ to halt the screening of the movie.
State government had formed a special committee to screen the movie before its release, but all in vain, as the screening has till date not happened.
–Agencies