BOMBAY TIMES (June 28, 2016)

Shilpi Sampad (MID-DAY; June 23, 2016)

Looks like there’s more trouble in store for Jimmy Sheirgill- starrer Shorgul, which has raised the hackles of the political fraternity in Uttar Pradesh and recently, invited a ban in a few cities — the film touches upon the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots. The Khamman Peer Baba Committee in Lucknow has issued a fatwa against the actor and producers for hurting their sentiments.

Sources close to the film claim after Muzaffarnagar, Kandhla, Meerut and a few other places, the film is facing a ban in prime cities like Lucknow and Kanpur. The makers are now said to have approached UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav to facilitate Shorgul’s release. Earlier this month, a PIL had been filed requesting a stay on the film’s release, alleging that it spreads communal disharmony and maligns political figures — Jimmy’s character, Ranjit Om, is said to be modelled after MLA Sangeet Som, an accused in the riots. Now, the Lucknow-based committee has taken offence to certain scenes and dialogues in the film which they feel might ignite hatred and, eventually, violence, in the state.

The fatwa mentions, “We will not allow the film to be screened in Uttar Pradesh or let Jimmy Sheirgill shoot in the state ever again.” Jimmy, who is currently in Canada with his family, could not be reached for a comment.

Swatantra Vijay Singh, the film’s co-producer, confirms the story and says, “Yes we have received the fatwa, but our film is a cinematic recreation of various tragic incidents that transpired in the past. Our film will decode the humanity-intolerance equation in the most non-controversial manner.”

Filmmakers, who had made last-minute scramble to book theaters this Friday in light of the Udta Punjab censorship row, reconsider decision
Gaurav Dubey (MID-DAY; June 15, 2016)

The long-drawn-out battle for certification of Udta Punjab not only gave sleepless nights to its makers but also kept other filmmakers on their toes. As reported by hitlist earlier, Shorgul and Junooniyat were slated to hit theatres next Friday, but were advanced by a week since the respective producers anticipated Udta Punjab to miss its June 17 date with moviebuffs. However, with the Bombay High Court paving the way for a timely release for Udta Punjab, makers of those two films have now switched back to their original date — June 24.

Says a source, “They have reconsidered their decision since Udta Punjab will arrive in theatres on June 17; they don’t want to compete with it at the box office, especially with such great buzz surrounding it. So, after the High Court ruled in favour of the movie, the other filmmakers went into a huddle with their own teams and conducted a series of meetings. Eventually, they decided it would be wise not to clash with Udta Punjab.”

Swatantra Vijay Singh, producer of Shorgul, confirms the news and says, “Our film has a strong message and reinstates the bitter reality of today where the common man’s voice is manipulated to favour socio-political motives. We don’t want this message to be lost when an equally socially relevant film like Udta Punjab is releasing on June 17. Hence, we are rescheduling to June 24 as the audience needs time to relate and consume such heavy-on-content thinking films.”

We tried to get in touch with the makers of Junooniyat, but they remained unavailable for comment. However, trade sources confirm that it has indeed been moved back to June 24.

With Udta Punjab’s release date still under speculation due to court proceedings, other filmmakers are cashing in on the situation
Gaurav Dubey (MID-DAY; June 11, 2016)

Even as the stalemate between the Censor Board and makers of Udta Punjab drags on with the Bombay High Court adjourning the hearing on the case till Monday, there is strong buzz in industry circles that the film’s June 17 release will be pushed back by a week. In anticipation of this open window and to avoid a clash with Udta Punjab on June 24, at least two films will hit the theatres one Friday earlier.

We hear Vivek Agnihotri’s Junooniyat and political drama Shorgul, which were slated to hit the marquee on June 24, will now reach theatres on June 17. Udta Punjab makers are, however, resolute about not changing their initial release date.

Yesterday morning, arguments related to the film continued in court where the lawyer representing Censor Board explained the need to effect the suggested cuts which include references to Punjab, expletives and drug scenes. The board apparently also wanted ‘Punjab’ to be removed from the title. While reserving its judgment until Monday, the court observed, “Whether it is TV or cinema, let people see it as everybody has a choice to watch what they want. The multiplex audience is mature enough to understand what it wants to see.” So, with the verdict being deferred, will Udta Punjab make it to theatres on June 17? The makers remained unavailable for comment while a source close to the project says, “That call will be taken on Monday after the court’s decision is out. We are on the right track and don’t want to let go of the June 17 date. We are doing whatever we can to get the film released as per schedule. We are not aware of others advancing their films’ dates.”

The spokesperson of T-Series, which is producing Junooniyat, confirms that the film will arrive in theatres on June 17, instead of June 24, adding: “Given that our film was ready for release, our distributors Puja Films felt that we should advance our release to June 17 since there is a strong English film (The Independence Day – Resurgence) and a strong Punjabi film (The Return Of Sardaarji) coming on June 24.”

Shorgul producer Swatantra Vijay Singh says, “In light of the recent controversies, we would not like to jeopardise the film’s fate and have decided to bring forward our release date to June 17. We don’t want a clash with Udta Punjab since both films have a rock solid message to give out and releasing the films on the same day will dilute the bigger picture of hammering a message on a consistent level.”

Shilpi Sampad (MID-DAY; June 9, 2016)

Upcoming political drama Shorgul, which is based on the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, will see Jimmy Sheirgill and Ashutosh Rana reuniting on reel after 13 years — they last featured in Haasil (2003). However, if sources are to be believed, the two actors have not been seeing eye to eye ever since the film’s productions began. We hear their respective teams asked the makers for separate campagin shots as publicity material, apparently since they both want to be portrayed as the solo lead.

Says a source, “Ashutosh had been insisting on a redraft of the script after seeing Jimmy’s role. He even preferred to skip the music launch at the very last minute, saying that he was not in town. Jimmy and former Union Minister Kapil Sibal, who has penned the lyrics for the film, were present at the event.”

When we got in touch with Ashutosh, he denied the buzz and called Jimmy a dear friend. “The reason behind my unhappiness is not him but the way the film is being publicised by the producers. That is what concerns me. My work got over with film’s shoot and I did Shorgul because director Pranav Singh cast me. I have never clamoured for prominence in any of my films, including Sangrash and Dushman, so why would I do that now?” he asks.

Jimmy, on the other hand, says if the makers have chosen to project the film in certain way, he respects their call. “I am sure Ashutosh’s issues are not with me but the producers. And he should clarify with them. I shot with him barely for two days since all actors have separate tracks and the focus is on the young love story. I am not the kind of guy, who would hog all the limelight. I will be the happiest if asked to promote the film for just two days," the actor adds.

The film’s producer, Swatantra Vijay Singh explains that the film being multi starrer, doesn’t entirely depend on one character. “Every actor complements the other and there is little scope of giving one actor all the attention. We have done full justice to every character since each of them is important to the development of the film. In fact, Ashutosh plays a key part representing the humanitarian philosophy that Shorgul wants to propogate while Jimmy is a billiant actor and will be playing a politician (character modelled after Sangeet Som for the first time),” he says.