Filmmaker, Vivek Agnihotri has been slammed with a legal notice by the grandson of former Prime Minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri, ahead of the release of his film "The Tashkent Files".
Agnihotri claims that Lal Bahadur Shastri's grandsons have raised an objection about the film, and have asked to stop its release.
The director has slammed the people, who have called it a propaganda film, saying, “Only an idiot or a guilty person can call it propaganda.”
"How can it be a propaganda film? Shastri was a Congress PM so, am I propagating Congress's agenda? Are you telling me such great leaders are owned by political parties? He led us to victory in a war with Pakistan after humiliating defeat from China in 1962," the film maker questioned, according to a report by India Today.
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The movie, "The Tashkent Files" revolves around the mysterious death of Lal Bahadur Shastri in 1966, soon after the signing of the Tashkent Agreement between India and Pakistan, to end their 1965 war.
"We have been sent a legal notice last night demanding to stop the release of the film. Three days ago, we had the film's screening in Delhi where he (Shastri's grandson) watched the film, loved it and appreciated it,” Vivek said.
"I don't know what happened, but I have a feeling that someone from the top family of Congress has coerced him to send us the legal notice. This is not a propaganda film. I don't know why people have a problem with the film,” he added.
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In the notice, a copy of which Vivek shared, it is alleged that the film is trying to "create unwarranted and unnecessary controversy", and "will hurt the emotions and sentiments of a large section of the society".
"I am yet to respond to the notice. I am planning to hold a press conference," he said.
Taking to his twitter handle, he tweeted on Wednesday, “NEWS ALERT: Shastri ji’s murder mystery #TheTashketFiles under legal threat by Congressmen. I appeal to every citizen who wants the truth of Shastri ji’s mysterious death out to support us.”
The film, which is set to release on Friday, features Naseeruddin Shah, Pallavi Joshi, Shweta Basu, Pankaj Tripathi, Mithun Chakraborty and Vinay Pathak in pivotal roles.
(With inputs from IANS)
