New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) “Ghooskhor Pandat” will be renamed, the filmmakers told the Delhi High Court on Tuesday following the controversy over its title that was alleged by many to be casteist. Neeraj Pandey’s Manoj Bajpayee starrer joins a long list of Hindi films that changed their titles, removed or muted words from their songs after facing heat from varied sections.
Here are some major films that did so: –“Padmavati” to “Padmaavat”: From his sets being vandalised to being burnt and later threats of the film being barred from its theatrical release, Sanjay Leela Bhansali faced all kinds of trouble while making his 2018 movie, starring Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Sahid Kapoor. The BJP and the Karni Sena claimed the movie depicts queen Padmavati in bad light. Protests mounted despite assurances from Bhansali, who also faced objection from Muslim groups for misrepresenting Allauddin Khilji. The censor board, which had already cleared the movie, reviewed it once again and suggested a title change from “Padmavati” to “Padmaavat”. Both Bhansali and Padukone faced death threats.
–“Billu Barber” to “Billu”: Produced by Shah Rukh Khan and starring Irrfan as a barber, the 2009 film faced issue for using the word ‘barber’ in its title, which many deemed was casteist. The film was directed by Priyadarshan.The Hairdressers’ Associations of Mumbai objected to the title, prompting Shah Rukh to change the title. The superstar, who also did a cameo in the movie, invited the association members for the premiere of the movie. The late Irrfan plays a village barber whose childhood friend is now a superstar and shooting near his village.
–“Laxmmi Bomb” to “Laxmmi”: The 2020 Akshay Kumar-Kiara Advani film directed by Raghava Lawrence revolves around a man who gets possessed by a transgender ghost seeking justice. The makers had to change the title after fringe group Karni Sena sent a legal notice alleging that they were being disrespectful to goddess Laxmi, the goddess of wealth in Hindu religion.
–“Ram-Leela” to “Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela”: Sanjay Leela Bhansali had to change the title of this 2013 film, again starring Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone in the lead role. Singh and Padukone played star-crossed lovers, Ram and Leela, from two warring gangster families of Gujarat in the movie, inspired by William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court ordered the makers to change the title as many religious groups objected to the names of “Ram and Leela”. The film faced protests and threats of bans but released with Bansali adding the words “Goliyon Ki Raasleela: Ram Leela”.
–“Mental Hai Kya” to “Judgementall Hai Kya”: The 2019 Kangana Ranaut-Rajkummar Rao film, which was produced by Ekta Kapoor, had to change its title after the Indian Psychiatric Society deemed the original title to be insensitive to those suffering mental health issues. The story revolves around Kangana’s character who has been in and out of mental asylum.
–“Loveratri” to “Loveyatri”: The 2018 film, which marked the debut of Salman Khan’s brother-in-law Aayush Sharma and Warina Hussain, faced protests for its title which some considered was disrespectful to the Navaratri festival. The movie, produced by Salman Khan Films, is set during the garba festival. The title of the film was changed from ‘Loveratri’ to ‘Loveyatri’ to avoid trouble.
–“Satyanarayan Ki Katha” to “Satyaprem Ki Katha”: Starring Kartik Aryan and Kiara Advani, the 2023 film had to opt for a title change to avoid hurting religious sentiments as Satyanarayan is another name of the Hindu god Vishnu. Director Sameer Vidwans said in a statement that the original title emerged through an organic process but they were ready to change it. –“Prithviraj” to “Samrat Prithviraj”: The 2022 Yash Raj Films project starring Akshay Kumar is inspired by Chand Vardai’s stories. It revolves around the story of king Prithviraj and his love story with Sanyogita. After Karni Sena objected to the title, the makers added the word “Samrat”.
–The title song of “Aaja Nachle”: The song in this 2007 Madhuri Dixit starrer produced by Yash Raj Films had to remove the word “mochi” after former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati banned the movie, calling its lyrics casteist. The production banner changed lyrics after the controversy.
–“Dhan Te Naan” from “Kaminey”: Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj had to mute the word ‘teli’ in the song from the 2009 film as the community objected to it being a casteist slur. The censor board then asked the makers to change it and the word was replaced by “dilli’.
–“Radha” song from “Student of the Year”: This Karan Johar film in 2012 marked the debut of Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan and Sidharth Malhotra. It had to change a line in the lyrics of the ‘Radha on the dance floor’ as religious groups objected to the word ‘sexy’. It was later replaced with the word ‘desi’. PTI BK MIN MIN BK
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