Gladwin Emmanuel (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 10, 2018)

On Friday, the makers of the Tamil film Sarkar agreed to do away with some “objectionable” scenes from their Diwali release in the face of backlash from members of the ruling AIADMK party. According to sources, a scene in which a character is shown discarding a mixer and grinder (given as freebie by the AIADMK) in a fire will be deleted. Additionally, the word ‘Komala’ from the name Komalavalli (an apparent reference to the late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa), along with a few dialogues, will be muted.

The Vijay-starrer opened on Tuesday. Almost immediately, Information and Publicity minister Kadambur C Raju came out strongly against the above-mentioned scenes following which, several theatres screening the film were reportedly targeted by AIADMK supporters. They damaged publicity material and banners, forcing the filmmakers to throw in the towel.

Meanwhile, A R Murugadoss who has directed the film, tweeted that cops had visited his house late night on Thursday and banged on the door several times before leaving as no one was home. He later moved Madras High Court for anticipatory bail. The court has reportedly stayed his arrest. And according to reports, security has been provided at his leading man’s residence.

Extending support to the film’s team, Rajinikanth condemned the backlash against the film, saying, “It is against the law to hold protests seeking the removal of some scenes from a Censor Board-certified film and trying to stall the screening and damaging the banners.” Pa Ranjith, who has directed Rajinikanth in films like Kabali and Kaala, slammed the government as well, saying that those who use government machinery and violence against the film were already aware that democracy has collapsed in this country. Filmmaker and head of Film Employees Federation of South India (FEFSI), RK Selvamani also issued a statement in support of the film.