After Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone’s PR stunt ahead of release of Chhapaak where she visited JNU and stood by one of the accused in violence, JNUSU President Aishe Ghosh, received flak over the social media, many people had called for boycott of her new film. Reacting to the call to boycott the film, saffron-turned-‘liberal’ political party Shiv Sena has condemned the same saying that such an act is reflective of ‘Talibani mindset’.
As they say, the Internet never forgets. Netizens were quick to point out all the times Shiv Sena had acted like thugs.
https://twitter.com/jatinbansal/status/1216178749328318465?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
In November, 2017, ahead of release of Deepika Padukone starrer Padmaavat, Shiv Sainiks had burned effigies of filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali and had also demanded a complete ban on the film. In fact, even after Shiv Sena became ‘liberal’ and joined hands with Congress and NCP, the party workers went violent and stopped screening of a Kannada film in Maharashtra in December, 2019. In the past, Shiv Sena has violently opposed release of various films including Mani Ratnam’s Bombay, Karan Johar’s My Name Is Khan, Aamir Khan’s PK, amongst others.
Netizens also reminded Shiv Sena of the time they indulged in destruction of public property.
https://twitter.com/Apurvgu68761514/status/1216208030691291137?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
In October 1991, Shiv Sainiks dug up the Wankhede Stadium strip in Mumbai to prevent Pakistan from playing in the country. That was not the only time Shiv Sena tried and succeeded in stopping cricket matches in and outside Maharashtra.
https://twitter.com/NiravShukla83/status/1216179915407663104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The hypocrisy was clearly not lost on twitterati who reminded Shiv Sena how their workers forcibly shaved off the head of a man because he criticised Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray in a Facebook post. Later, Shiv Sena goons attacked and assaulted a government employee for calling Uddhav Thackeray ‘nalayak’ in a Facebook post.