Bollywood top guns stand united for Aamir Khan in row over Fanaa

Mumbai: Bollywood came together yesterday to condemn the action of the Bharatiya Janata Party in not allowing the screening of the Aamir Khan-starrer Fanaa in Gujarat following the actor's comments on the Narmada dam.

With media reports of the film industry being divided in the condemnation of a political party which is not allowing the film to be exhibited in Gujarat, the film industry's top guns yesterday called a press conference to express their solidarity with Aamir Khan and Fanaa.

Ever since Khan expressed his views that the height of the massive Narmada dam should be increased only after all the displaced people are rehabilitated, BJP activists in Gujarat have been up in arms accusing the actor of being against the people of Gujarat.

The film industry will give a week's notice to the Gujarat Government to resolve the issue or will deal with the matter in their own way, said Pehlaj Nihalani, president of the Association of TV and Motion Pictures Producers.

No confrontation

He called it a "war" though Amit Khanna, President, Film and Television Producers Guild of India, said none from the film industry wanted any confrontation with the state government but emphasised that filmgoers and theatres should be given police protection.

Though the actor has been constantly explaining that his concern was with the dam oustees and has not objected to the construction of the dam, the BJP activists have not allowed the film's exhibition.

Producer of the film Yash Chopra said that the problem started about a month back when posters of the film were torn down in Ahmedabad.

"I even got an appointment with Chief Minister Narendra Modi who spoke to me affectionately and respectfully for one and a half hours," said Chopra.

"I told him that Aamir was not against the dam but only concerned about the rehabilitation. I was given assurance by Modi and therefore sent the prints to Ahmedabad. But when the theatre owner told me that the activists would set the cinemas on fire if Fanaa was shown, I asked them to send the prints back since their safety was of prime importance."

Even after meeting and getting an assurance from Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Das Munsi, the issue has not been resolved, he said.

Huge loss

The losses for all those concerned, the government, producer, distributor, technician and others would be around Rs 10 million per day, he said.

Present at the press meet were well-known producers and directors Subhash Ghai, Ashutosh Gowarikar, actors Anil Kapoor and Anupam Kher and their oft-repeated statement was that no citizen should be deprived of his or her freedom of expression.