Kangana’s movie anti-Sikh, shows community in poor light: SGPC

Actor-politician Kangana Ranaut’s movie “Emergency” has upset the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and several Sikh organisations, resulting in protests over it across Punjab.

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The film is based on the 21-month period from 1975 to 1977 after the Congress government led by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a State of Emergency in the country, citing internal and external threats to it.

Ever since the teaser of the film was released on August 14 last year, the SGPC had been opposing it, accusing the film-makers of misrepresenting the Sikh community and twisting historical facts.

A row had erupted over the depiction of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale — who led the Khalistan movement and was later declared as a martyr and saint by the Akal Takht.

In one of the sequences in the movie’s trailer, Bhindranwale, the former chief of the Damdami Taksal, was shown to be in cahoots with Indira Gandhi, promising to bring in votes for the Congress in lieu of a separate Sikh state.

This was “offensive” and “anti-Sikh”, damaging to the community’s image, said SGPC’s Dharam Parchar Committee member Ajaib Singh Abhiyasi, one of the organisers of the protests against the film.

Bhindranwale, was declared a Qaumi Shaheed (community’s martyr) by the Akal Takht in June 2003. Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh had also demanded a ban on the release of the film.

Ajaib Singh said the film plot was factually incorrect.

He said the history was distorted as the initial trailer suggested, where Bhindranwale was shown involved in negotiations with Indira Gandhi for political gains.

“This sequence, which has promoted a narrative that he supported the separatist negotiations, is a farce. He only spoke about more powers to the states. Such distorted portrayals are bound to damage the community’s reputation,” he said.

“Above all, Bhindranwale was nowhere in the picture when the Emergency was imposed in the country. He became the chief of the Damdami Taksal in 1977 only after the demise of Kartar Singh,” he added.

Ajaib Singh said Punjab leaders, especially those from the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), including Parkash Singh Badal and Gurcharan Singh Tohra, had protested against Indira Gandhi’s decision of imposing the Emergency then, but in a peaceful manner and even courted arrests.

“Why did the makers not show the peaceful protest by Sikhs? It was a politically motivated attempt to tarnish the image of Sikhs portraying them to be as peace disrupters and anti-national,” he said.

The SGPC had sent a legal notice to the film-makers on August 28 last year for “misrepresenting Sikhs” and demanded the removal of the trailer sequence.

A resolution against the film was also passed in the executive and general house of the Sikh body on September 28, 2024, demanding a ban on it.

‘No idea about final print’

Earlier, sources had said that the film was released with “some cuts”, yet there was no official communication to the SGPC whether the “objectionable” portion was removed or not.

“We have no inkling about the film’s final prints. The SGPC was never taken into confidence. No Sikh body representative was appointed in the Censor Board apprising them of our objections,” Ajaib Singh said.

Earlier, the SGPC had also written to Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw and Central Board of Film Certification’s chairperson Prasoon Joshi to remove the distorted content. As a result, the release, scheduled for September 6 last year, was deferred.