Actor Ayushmann Khurrana will next be seen as a cop investigating a murder case, that has its roots in caste divide, in Anubhav Sinha's upcoming film Article 15. After the trailer launch, the film earned the ire of the Brahmin community in Uttar Pradesh over the fact that the story has been "tweaked". With the intention of portraying the accused men as Brahmins, they feel it will defame the community. Post that, several reports suggested that Anubhav's effigies being burnt outside theatres in a bid to dissuade the makers from releasing Article 15. In the latest development, Karni Sena too has threatened, not only Anubhav, but also the multiplex chain owners in order to protest against the screening of the film.
In an interaction with a leading daily, Anubhav reacted on the ongoing controversies and said, "Why would I make an anti-Brahmin film? People are smart enough to know that there were enough and more Brahmins associated with the making of the film to know [that it doesn't showcase them in bad light]." He further seemed appalled that the Karni Sena — that had challenged the release of Padmaavat last year — completely disregards the decision made by Central Board of Film Certification's (CBFC). "The CBFC is an autonomous government body, which has cleared the film with a U/A certificate. It's time people respected such institutions," he quipped.
Last but not the least, he urged CBFC to ensure smooth release of films. "The CBFC should report this to the Home Ministry to curb such protests. [People] can disagree, but such overt threats must stop, once and for all. Filmmakers can't be constantly bullied," Anubhav pointed out. Last but not the least, the filmmaker said that he oesn't intend to seek police intervention immediately. "The threats are in public domain. Whenever the police thinks it should intervene, it will," he signed off.
Article 15 is slated to hit the theatres on June 28.
(Source: Mid-Day)
