Fact Check: 'Chhapaak' trends on Twitter- and no its screen villain is neither 'Nadeem' nor 'Rajesh'
New Delhi, Jan 8: A day after Deepika Padukone visited the JNU campus to express solidarity with students who had been attacked, her film "Chhapaak" made another splash on Wednesday over the name of its antagonist.
While Deepika was the focus of many a discussion on social media and beyond for showing up at a public meeting in the university, the film based on the life of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal, was also making news for quite another reason.
In what could well be a storm in a 'Twitter cup', "Nadeem Khan" and "Rajesh" began trending on the microblogging site after a magazine article claimed the name of the antagonist had been changed. By 4 pm, 'Nadeem Khan' clocked close to 60,000 tweets and 'Rajesh' close behind with 50,000.
In 2005, Laxmi was disfigured for life when a man called Nadeem Khan and three others allegedly hurled acid at her in Delhi's upscale Khan Market.
In the film based on her life, the narrative remains the same but the names have been changed. So, Laxmi is 'Malti' Agarwal and Nadeem becomes 'Babboo' aka 'Bashir Khan'.
On Wednesday, Swarajya magazine wrote an article headlined, "The Ways Of Bollywood: In Deepika Padukone-Starrer Chhapaak, Acid Attacker Naeem Khan Becomes Rajesh'."
"As part of a backlash against Padukone's JNU 'meet and greet', social media users researched the names of the characters involved in the movie Chhapaak and conspicuously found the name of main perpetrator Naeem Khan absent," the article alleged.
But in the Meghna Gulzar directed film, there is no mention of any Nadeem or Naeem Khan. Moreover, Rajesh is the name of Malti's boyfriend.
Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Babul Supriyo jumped into the controversy, saying it was another example of "absolute hypocrisy".
"...When you say all characters are fictitious and don't have any resemblance with living beings and all of that, this is absolute hypocrisy. When you change the name which also changes the religion, it has been done very deliberately," Supriyo told a TV channel when asked to comment on the controversy.
South Delhi BJP MP Ramesh Biduri also called for a boycott of the movie.
With Deepika grabbing attention by going to JNU, many appreciated her 'silent solidarity' but others criticised her for "supporting the Leftists" and said it was a promotional stunt ahead of the release.
"#Boycott Chhapaak" was trending on Twitter as was "#ISupportDeepika".
#Chhapaak trends on Twitter - and no its screen villain is neither 'Nadeem' nor 'Rajesh'.
— Radhika Sharma (@KhayalaBibi) January 8, 2020
Unlike the #FakeNews peddlers, I was fortunate to watch a special screening of the film last evening.
Here goes, my report for @PTI_News. https://t.co/HhNIEjRDya
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
CM Siddaramaiah urges Centre to increase LPG supply
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has urged the Centre to immediately intervene to address a severe shortage of commercial LPG in Bengaluru, saying the crisis is forcing restaurants and related establishments to shut down and impacting a wide cross-section of the public dependent on the hospitality sector.
In a letter written to Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday and shared with the media on Thursday, Siddaramaiah highlighted a sharp mismatch between demand and supply, noting that only a fraction of the required cylinders is being made available.
“As against the demand of 50,000 LPG cylinders from restaurants, hotels, catering establishments and PG accommodations etc., we are able to supply only 1,000 cylinders per day,” the Chief Minister said.
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He added that the shortage has led to a visible increase in shutting down of establishments due to unavailability of commercial LPG, affecting students, IT professionals, farmers, dairy producers and others reliant on the hospitality ecosystem.
Referring to recent directions from the Ministry prioritising domestic LPG supply, Siddaramaiah said the State has taken steps to regulate allocation for essential segments in line with the Centre’s guidelines, but the situation remains critical.
The CM also flagged the absence of an integrated monitoring system for commercial LPG distribution, in contrast to the existing IT system for domestic gas supply, leading to gaps in transparency and oversight.
He further pointed out that Auto LPG, a key fuel for autorickshaws that provide last-mile connectivity in Bengaluru, is also facing similar issues due to the lack of a monitoring mechanism.
Noting that India is expected to receive two LPG tankers soon, Siddaramaiah sought the Union Minister’s intervention to ensure adequate allocation to Karnataka, particularly Bengaluru, considering its operational needs and dependency patterns.
“I request your kind intervention to ensure adequate allocation and availability of commercial LPG and Auto LPG to Karnataka, keeping in view the operational requirements and unique dependency patterns of the State, especially city of Bengaluru,” he said.
