"Hugely Demotivating": Kangana Ranaut As 'Emergency' Release Postponed

Actor Kangana Ranaut today reacted to her upcoming film 'Emergency' being postponed amid a huge controversy and said it was "hugely demotivating". The film, in which Ms Ranaut plays the role of former prime minister Indira Gandhi, was scheduled to release on September 6 but was pushed back after it did not get a green signal from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

"The law of the land is that one can show unimaginable amount of violence and nudity on OTT platforms without any consequence or censorship, one can even distort real-life events to suit their politically motivated sinister motives, there is all the freedom for communists or leftists across the world for such anti-national expressions but as a nationalist no OTT platform allows us to make films that revolve around the integrity and unity of Bharat, it seems censorship is only for some of us who don't want 'tukde' of this nation and make films on historic facts," she said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

"It's hugely demotivating and unjust," Kangana Ranaut said.

She was replying to a post by BJP leader Amit Malviya, who slammed 'IC 814 - The Kandahar Hijack', a web series on the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight by Pakistan-based terror outfit Harkat-ul-Mujahideen.

Anubhav Sinha's show has courted controversy for changing the hijackers' names to 'Bhola' and 'Shankar'.

Ms Ranaut also spoke about facing censorship issues in a podcast and said "an emergency has been imposed" on her film too.

"It's a very hopeless state. I'm quite disappointed in our country and whatever the circumstances are... How much will we keep getting scared?  I've made this film with a lot of self-respect which is why the CBFC can't point out any contention. They've stalled my certificate, but I'm determined to release an uncut version of the film. I'll fight in court and release an uncut version," she said.

Last week, the actor-turned-politician, who is also the director, writer, and co-producer of 'Emergency', said her film is still stuck with the censor board contrary to rumors that it has been cleared for release.

She had said she was under pressure to not show the assassination of the former prime minister by her security guards.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), a regional political party in Punjab, had sent a legal notice to the CBFC seeking to prevent the release of the film, claiming it may "incite communal tensions" and "spread misinformation".

It had alleged the trailer of the 'Emergency' depicted "erroneous historical facts that not only misrepresent the Sikh community but also promote hatred and social discord".