On January 22, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said in a tweet that Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan had called him at 2 AM on January 22 and sought action over the protests happening against his recently released film Pathaan. In his tweet, Sarma said, “Bollywood actor Shri Shah Rukh Khan called me, and we talked today morning at 2 AM. He expressed concern about an incident in Guwahati during the screening of his film. I assured him that it is the duty of the state govt to maintain law and order. We will enquire and ensure no such untoward incidents.”
Bollywood actor Shri @iamsrk called me and we talked today morning at 2 am. He expressed concern about an incident in Guwahati during screening of his film. I assured him that it’s duty of state govt to maintain law & order. We’ll enquire and ensure no such untoward incidents.
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) January 22, 2023
Reportedly, members of Bajrang Dal entered Narengi, Guwahati and tore the posters. They raised slogans against the film as well. There have been multiple incidents of protests against the film across the country.
Following the incident, when CM Sarma was asked if he had a word with SRK about the security measures, he said, “Who is Shah Rukh Khan? I do not know anything about him or the film Pathaan.” When he was informed about the incident by the reporters, he said, “Khan has not called me. However, many from Bollywood do so regarding the problem. If he calls, I will look into the matter. Action will be taken if law and order have been violated and a case has been filed.”
Backlash against Pathaan
Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone starrer spy-action film by Yash Raj Films, Pathaan, is scheduled for release on January 25. The movie has already made headings multiple times for several wrong reasons. First, the song Besharam Rang allegedly hurt religious sentiments as Deepika was seen wearing a saffron bikini while romanticising with SRK in the song.
Later, the second song, ‘Jhoome Jo Pathaan’, stirred controversy as the song was reused version of music director Vishal-Shekhar old song. Furthermore, netizens have alleged that many scenes of the film were copied or inspired by Hollywood films.
