Nepal court lifts ban on Adipurush; Kathmandu Mayor says ‘ready to face punishment’
1 min read 22 Jun 2023, 10:11 PM ISTPatan High Court judge Dhir Bahadur Chand ruled that ‘Adipurush’ has clearance from the censor board and should not be stopped from screening
PremiumA court in Nepal on Thursday lifted the ban on Hindi films in various regions of the country. The court also asked the authorities to not halt the screening of Hindi movies including ‘Adipurush’ in the cinemas of Nepal. The judgment was not taken well by Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah, who first imposed the ban. He said that he is ready to face any punishment but will not allow the screening of the film.
Patan High Court judge Dhir Bahadur Chand ruled that ‘Adipurush’ has clearance from the censor board and should not be stopped from screening.
'Will not abide the court's order': Kathmandu Mayor
Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah didn't agree with the court order and said that he would not "abide by the court’s order".
"The film's writer said that Nepal was under India, this clearly shows India’s ill intention. To term this as a stunt by the Nepal government and to issue an order by the court in favor of screening the movie means, to accept that Nepal was once under India’s rule, the court and the government are both the slaves of India," he said in a Facebook post.
"I am ready to face any punishment for this but the movie won't work and won't be allowed to run," he added.
Objections to dialogue on Sita
Last week, cities like Kathmandu and Pokhara in Nepal imposed a ban on the screening of all Hindi films over its objection to dialogues in the film ‘Adipurush’ which refers to Sita as the “daughter of India." Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah claimed that it is widely known that Sita was the “daughter of Nepal."
Since its release on 16 June, ‘Adipurush’ has been controversial as people objected to its dialogues and low-level content. The film performed phenomenally well during the first few days, but the revenues also dropped as the criticism became louder.
