NCP LEADER and former minister Jitendra Awhad said on Sunday that he would continue to oppose Marathi movie Har Har Mahadev but would not stop its screening in theatres even as Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati, descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, said he would seek the intervention of the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister to stop screening across the state. Awhad was arrested on Friday and later released on bail on Saturday for stalling the screening of the movie at a Thane mall.
He had said the movie тАЬdistorted the Maratha historyтАЭ. Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati had first opposed the movie, pointing out тАЬdistortion of historical factsтАЭ in it at a press conference in Kolhapur.
Speaking to The Indian Express on Sunday, Awhad said, тАЬThe movie is filled with distortion of facts. I am not objecting to one or two scenes but to several of them. In one scene, Baji Prabhu is shown wielding a sword at Chhatrapati Shivaji. This is ridiculous. Words like Marathas and Marathis are used as if they are two different entities. Marathas and Marathis are same. It was Shivaji Maharaj who brought all castes under one roofтАжтАЭ
Awhad said Chhatrapati Shivaji was a human being who rose to become an idol. тАЬтАжhe was not GodтАжHe rose to become the idol of Maharashtra but the movie depicts him in a different light.тАЭ
On whether he would again stop the screening of the movie, Awhad said, тАЬI have done my job by bringing to light how a movie is trying to create a wrong impression on young mindsтАжI will not be stopping its screeningтАжBut I want to know from Maratha leaders and the community whether they are okay with such distortion of the life and times of Shivaji Maharaj.тАЭ
The NCP also said they will continue to agitate against the screening of the movie anywhere in the state. тАЬWe will continue to hold agitations against it,тАЭ partyтАЩs state chief spokesperson Mahesh Tapase said.
Meanwhile, Sambhajiraje said he will seek the intervention of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to pull down the movie from across theatres in the state.
тАЬтАжIn the name of cinematic liberty, the makers of the movie have gone to extreme lengths. Some of the characters in the movie are depicted in such a way that [it seems like] an attempt to make a mockery of the Shivaji eraтАж it is all distortion of historical facts. Marathi is a language and Marathas was not a caste. During Chhatrapati ShivajiтАЩs time, Marathas included people from all castes and creed,тАЭ he said.
Sambhajiraje said he will most likely meet both Shinde and Fadnavis on November 16. тАЬI will urge them┬а to stop the screening of the movie. If this is done, other filmmakers will be extra careful in handling history related to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj which is an inspiration for future generations,тАЭ he said.
