Khap leaders want the film to be banned

Spicezee Bureau

Mumbai: Another issue based film has become the recent target of hardliners, in this case the khaps. Just days before the release, ‘Khap - A Story of Honour Killing’, based on Haryana`s khap panchayats, is facing the ire of village heads in Haryana. Few people of the khap community approached the Haryana government to ban the film as they feel it shows them in a negative light. They`ve threatened that they won`t allow the film to be screened in theatres. Ajai Sinha, the director of the film, speaking to the media said that he was only condemning the act of honour killing through his film, and not the community. He said that his movie was inspired by a news headline (‘Medieval Justice Just 50km From Delhi’), and after that he started researching the subject. “If a teacher beats a boy, and the boy dies, we condemn the act and not the entire teaching community. It portrays the negative acts of the community and their medieval system of justice”, Ajai said. The director says he was prepared for some opposition, but not to this extent. In fact, he`d even tried requesting a few political bigwigs in Haryana to watch the movie, but says that no one wants to court any controversy. The lead actor of the film, Sartaj Gill, plays Kush, an MBA student who revolts against the system since he falls in love with a girl from the same khap. He said, “The movie shows the truth. There`s no exaggeration. We`ve discussed the positives of the khaps too.”