VHP and Bajrang Dal activists protested against the upcoming Bollywood film ‘Pathaan’ and its song ‘Besharam Rang’ in Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur on Saturday.
Shahjahanpur,UPDATED: Dec 18, 2022 02:26 IST
Deepika Padukone and Shah Rukh Khan in a still from Pathaan song Besharam Rang.
By India Today Web Desk: Protests against the movie ‘Pathaan’ have now reached Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur, with Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) activists burning the effigy of Shah Rukh Khan and raising slogans.
The backlash against the SRK starrer began following the release of the song Besharam Rang.
An outfit in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore had carried out similar protests, claiming the song, which also stars Deepika Padukone, hurt religious sentiments.
Read | ‘Block Pathaan’s release’: Now Muslim board slams SRK’s next for hurting religious sentiments
Madhya Pradesh minister Narottam Mishra also took objection to the saffron dress worn by Deepika in the song.
On Saturday, the VHP and Bajrang Dal raised similar concerns, accusing the film of demeaning the saffron color.
Bajrang Dal claimed during the protests that it will take legal action if the movie is released in the state without censoring the “vulgar” song.
VHP district leader Rajesh Awasthi said that Bajrang Dal workers will garland SRK’s banner with shoes and will also beat the actor with shoes.
The outfits also threatened the censor board with clearing the movie.
The video of the song Besharam Rang, released recently, has been making waves for SRK-Deepika chemistry. The song, sung by Shilpa Rao, has garnered over 71 million views on YouTube within days of its release. Pathaan, which also stars John Abraham, is slated for a January 2023 release.
(With input from Vinay Pandey)
Read | Besharam Rang row continues! Protestors disrupt SRK’s film shoot in Jabalpur, chant Hanuman Chalisa
