'Paatal Lok': BJP MLA files complaint against Anushka Sharma
Bollywood actor Anushka Sharma-produced web series Paatal Lok continues to spark controversies. After miffing the Gorkha community, the Amazon Prime Video show has now invited ire of a Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Uttar Pradesh. Nandkishore Gurjar, a legislator from UP's Loni has filed a police complaint against Anushka for using his picture in the show without permission. Here's more.
The picture used in the show has been morphed to include some fictional characters. However, it anyway features Gurjar and other BJP leaders. The image displays show's villain and politician Balkishan Bajpayee (Anup Jalota) inaugurating a highway, with Gurjar standing close to him. As it turns out, the original photo featured UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and is from an actual inauguration in UP.
आज गाजियाबाद में देश की सबसे लंबी 10.30 किमी. 6 लेन 'हिंडन एलिवेटेड रोड' का उद्घाटन किया। pic.twitter.com/1nGu5utvGw
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) March 30, 2018
In addition, Gurjar also raised objections over the show's content, calling it "anti-national". In his complaint, the MLA said that the series shows Sanatan Dharma in poor light. He alleged that it maligns the image of BJP (which governs both UP and Centre) and the Gurjar community. The politician added the show creates a terror-free image of Pakistan and insults national investigating agencies.
The complaint comes at a time when the makers of Paatal Lok are already facing allegations of maligning the image of the Gorkha community and people from northeast India. Recently, a Gorkha association in Arunachal Pradesh filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) against Anushka over the use of a "sexist slur" against a character belonging to northeast India.
Produced by Anushka's Clean Slate Films and written/created by Sudip Sharma, Paatal Lok revolves around the story of a Delhi cop who is handed the case of a lifetime after four accused are nabbed for conspiring to murder a prominent prime time journalist. The series stars Jaideep Ahlawat, Gul Panag, Neeraj Kabi, Swastika Mukherjee, Abhishek Banerjee, and Jagjeet Sandhu, among others.
