After ban, Prakash Jha dilutes ‘Aarakshan’

Spicezee Bureau

Mumbai: After facing ban in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, filmmaker Prakash Jha finally succumbed to the political pressure and is ready to make minor cuts in ‘Aakrashan,’ a film based on contentious reservation policy, which is all set to release on August 12. Despite a clean chit from the Censor Board and the Bombay High Court, Prakash Jha is facing difficulty in getting his film released. In a joint press conference with Republican Party of India leader Ramdas Athawale, who demanded certain changes in the film, Jha said that he is ready to edit scenes with objectionable dialogues from his controversial film ‘Aakrashan.’ When asked the reason behind banning of the film in UP and Punjab, Jha said that, “it can be politically charged. ‘Aarakshan’ not only deals with reservation but also deals with commercialization of education and we are trying to talk with them (political parties involved in banning the film in UP and Punjab).” Earlier, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab government Wednesday late evening ordered a ban on Prakash Jha’a multi-starrer ‘Aarakshan’ across the state saying some dialogues in the film were provocative and could incite violence. The Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP government said the ban will remain in force till screening committee constituted by the state previews the movie and submits its report. A couple of days back, Maharashtra minister and OBC leader Chaggan Bhujbal had expressed objection to certain scenes and dialogues in ‘Aarakshan.’ The film stars Amitabh Bachchan, Saif Ali Khan, Manoj Bajpai, Deepika Padukone and Prateik Babbar among others in pivotal roles.