'Adipurush' faces protests across India, ban in Nepal
New Delhi, Jun 19: "Adipurush", a lavish multilingual retelling of the Ramayana, was at the centre of protests in several cities on Monday and led to a ban on all Hindi films in Nepal with Union minister Anurag Thakur stepping in to say that nobody has the right to hurt the sentiments of people.
As the row over the film escalated and audiences in various parts of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi took to the streets, Mumbai Police agreed to give security to dialogue writer Manoj Muntashir Shukla on his request.
The film, directed by Om Raut and fronted by Prabhas and Kriti Sanon, has come under attack for its dialogue, colloquial language and representation of some characters from the much-loved mythological epic.
In Nepal as well, "Adipurush" provoked ire over its dialogues, but particularly for its mention of Sita as "India's daughter". Screening of "Adipurush" and all other Hindi films has been banned in the country until the film's team makes desired changes.
In Mumbai, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Thakur said the film's writer and director have agreed to make some changes after the nationwide uproar.
"Nobody has the right to hurt the sentiments of others. The CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) has taken a decision over the issue. It is their job," Thakur told reporters when asked about his views and the central government's stand over the controversial film.
"Adipurush", which was released across the country in Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Tamil on Friday, stars Prabhas as Raghav (Ram), Kriti Sanon as Janaki (Sita) and Saif Ali Khan as Lankesh (Raavan).
According to production banner T-Series, it has grossed Rs 340 crore in three days at the global box office.
Different parts of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and the national capital witnessed protests against the film on Monday.
While seers in Ayodhya demanded an immediate ban on the film saying its dialogues made their "blood boil", in Varanasi, a group of people staged a protest and tore posters of the Om Raut-directed film. A Hindu outfit also staged a protest outside a theatre in the temple town of Mathura.
A police complaint was lodged by the Hindu Mahasabha with the Lucknow police against the film's makers and actors. A case is yet to be registered in this connection, police said.
Acharya Satyendra Das, the chief priest of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, said, "The film's dialogues make our blood boil. The film should be banned immediately. The government should ensure that this does not happen again."
In Mathura, Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha activists staged a protest outside a cinema in the Govind Nagar police station area and raised slogans against the film.
Meanwhile, the Samajwadi Party joined the chorus against the film and said the faithful are hurt by its "cheap and superficial dialogues".
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav said the censor board should check the "political character certificate" of those who play with the faith of people by making films with an agenda using the money of their political masters.
"Has the Censor Board become Dhritarashtra?" he asked in a tweet. Dhritarashtra, the father of the Kauravas, was a blind king in the epic Mahabharata.
Another Samajwadi Party leader, Shivpal Yadav, alleged that efforts are being made to belittle the great and inspiring character of Lord Ram and his story through cinema with "cheap and superficial dialogues".
A group of people disrupted the film's screening in a mall in Nalasopara in Maharashtra's Palghar district. According to a police official, the protesters claimed they belong to a group called Rashtra Pratham.
The protesters shouted 'Jai Shri Ram' slogans and asked people to boycott the film, he said.
In Delhi's Shahdara area, some people were seen raising slogans outside a movie theatre, a senior police official said.
"There were some people raising slogans outside a movie theatre in east Delhi's Shahdara area. However, the show is underway without any interruption," the official said.
As protests intensified, the film's writer has been provided security by the Mumbai Police after he cited a threat to his life, an official said on Monday.
"We have received an application from Manoj Shukla and we are considering providing him security following a threat to his life," the official said.
On Sunday, Shukla announced that the makers have decided to "revise some of the dialogues" in the Hindi version and the amended lines will be added to the movie by this week.
Later, T-Series said the team has decided to make alterations to the dialogues of "Adipurush" in order to value "the input of the public".
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Like Rohit and Virat, Sanju can''t be replaced: Rajasthan Royals skipper Riyan Parag
Jaipur (PTI): Rajasthan Royals skipper Riyan Parag on Thursday said Sanju Samson's void cannot be filled in his side, likening the challenge to replacing stalwarts like Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli.
Sanju, who led the Royals from 2021 to 2025, was traded to Chennai Super Kings in a pre-season move, with Ravindra Jadeja coming in as part of the deal.
"If you talk about Sanju bhaiya, we never think about replacing the kind of player he is," Parag told reporters in a pre-season press conference here.
"We can perhaps look for someone with a similar skillset or have someone bat in his position...
"It’s like there is no replacement for Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma... In the same way, there is no replacement for Sanju bhaiya because he is such a good player,” Parag said.
Having represented the franchise for 11 years across two stints, Sanju was RR's most successful captain and leading run-scorer, having guided them to the IPL 2022 final and the playoffs in 2024.
His stature has only grown manifold following a stellar T20 World Cup campaign, where he struck three successive match-defining half-centuries to power India to a historic treble and title defence.
India defeated New Zealand by 96 runs in the final with Sanju being adjudged the Player-of-the-Tournament.
Rajasthan Royals had a forgettable last season, enduring 10 defeats to finish ninth in the 10=team standings.
Parag, who has been picked as the captain following Sanju's exit, said RR lost far too many close matches last year and the 2008 winners need better strategy and planning.
“This year, the focus is to plan better and finish games, which we couldn’t do in the previous edition," he said.
"We need to plan well. Last year, there were about 5-6 games which we lost in the last over or even on the last ball. Had we been able to convert those, or had we calculated better, this question (if RR would try anything new) would not have been asked because we would have qualified (for knockouts) by winning those matches," he said.
"I think that in every T20 game, there are 3-4 decisions that you have to make which change the course of the game. If we take those small decisions with strategy and planning, this year will be different," Parag added.
He further expressed his gratitude to the franchise for keeping their faith in him despite several seasons of struggle.
"I was here when I was just 17 and I have seen all the ups and downs, though more downs than ups till now. I want to thank Rajasthan Royals for supporting me and understanding the cricketer I am,” Parag said.
Sangakkara backs Parag -- the skipper
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The Royals’ director of cricket and head coach Kumar Sangakkara said he has always “admired” Parag as a cricketer and he was picked as a skipper after a robust round of interviews with other candidates.
"It was about trying to find the best person who can lead the Rajasthan Royals. I (first) met Riyan when he was a teenager and have admired him as a cricketer. He's right (when he says) he has gone through a lot and seen a lot," Sangakkara said.
"The most striking thing for me was (to see) how reflective and mature he has become."
“To select a captain once Sanju decided to leave, it was very important that we explore all options. We had shortlisted some candidates that we had a very strict interview process for. Riyan knows the questions were hard. At the end of the day Manoj (Badale) and I sat down and it was evident that the right choice to lead Rajasthan was Riyan,” Sangakkara added.
