Maharashtra Congress MLA Amin Patel on Monday raised the issue of Alia Bhatt starrer Gangubai Kathiawadi in the state assembly and demanded that the film’s name be changed as it maligns the name of Kathiawad city. Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt’s daughter Alia Bhatt plays the role of Gangubai Kathiawadi, who was one of the most powerful madam from Kamathipura in the 1960s. Kamathipura is Mumbai’s red-light area.
Patel, who represents Mumbadevi constituency, claimed that Kamathipura has undergone change since that time and it is not like how it was in the 1950s. “Women there are excelling in different professions. The film’s title also maligns the name of Kathiawad city. The name of the film should be changed,” he said. Congress is part of the ruling alliance in Maharashtra, Maha Vikas Aghadi, led by Shiv Sena.
Patel also raised the issue of an upcoming webseries on HotStar by the name Kamathipura. He claimed that the people of Kamathipura are upset by the portrayal in the film.
He urged Maharashtra government to intervene.
The film Gangubai Kathiawadi is adapted from one of the chapters of the book Mafia Queens of Mumbai by S. Hussain Zaidi. It is slated for countrywide release on 30th July 2021.
