Ram-Leela: sense and sensibilities
A trial court in Delhi has banned the release of Ram-Leela, Sanjay Leela Bhansali's version of Romeo and Juliet, in the national capital at least for now.
This ban comes on a petition which said that since the word Ram-Leela is associated with Lord Ram, people will go to watch the movie with that expectation and will be hurt by the content of the movie, which contains sex, violence and vulgarity. It also says the title has nothing to do with mythology and is hence misleading.
But the Censor Board has already cleared the movie and the High Court had recently dismissed a similar petition and went a step further and fined the NGO, which had filed the petition. Many are now asking whether anyone has the right to appropriate these names, including groups in the name of religion? We discuss.
This ban comes on a petition which said that since the word Ram-Leela is associated with Lord Ram, people will go to watch the movie with that expectation and will be hurt by the content of the movie, which contains sex, violence and vulgarity. It also says the title has nothing to do with mythology and is hence misleading.
But the Censor Board has already cleared the movie and the High Court had recently dismissed a similar petition and went a step further and fined the NGO, which had filed the petition. Many are now asking whether anyone has the right to appropriate these names, including groups in the name of religion? We discuss.
