Kolkata: West Bengal’s ruling party Trinamool Congress (TMC) has filed an FIR against the makers of Akshay Kumar-starrer ‘Kesari Chapter 2’ for distorting the state’s freedom movement and insulting Bengali revolutionaries.
The seven producers of the film have been booked under multiple sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at the Bidhannagar South police station.
According to TMC, a scene in the movie allegedly misrepresents iconic freedom fighters Khudiram Bose and Barindra Kumar Ghosh from Bengal.
In the film, Khudiram Bose is referred to as ‘Khudiram Singh’ and Barindra Ghosh as ‘Birendra Kumar’ from Amritsar.
Condemning the wrong portrayals and calling it a “deliberate distortion of history” and a “deep insult to Bengal,” TMC leaders Kunal Ghosh and Arup Chakraborty addressed a press conference at the party headquarters.
“The names of Bengali revolutionaries who sacrificed their lives for India’s freedom were being distorted. This is not just a mistake — this is a conspiracy to erase Bengal’s role in the freedom movement. How did such a film get a censor certificate?” Ghosh asked.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, without mentioning the movie’s name, slammed the filmmakers for trying to undermine the contributions of freedom fighters from Bengal.
“There are attempts to undermine the role played by the Bengali revolutionaries during the independence struggle. We condemn this. The BJP has been targeting Bengal and our cultural heritage,” she said.
The party further alleged that the BJP-led Central government has repeatedly attempted to undermine Bengal’s history and cultural identity.
“This is not the first time. The central government has often played games with Bengal’s legacy and dignity. But this time, the limit has been crossed,” claimed Ghosh.
Directed by Karan Singh Tyagi, the film, based on the book ‘The Case That Shook the Empire’ by Raghu Palat and Pushpa Palat, features Akshay, R Madhavan, and Ananya Panday in key roles.
Demanding immediate action from the Centre and questioning the role of the censor board, the party asked, “Why didn’t the censor board flag these historical distortions? Who allowed such a film to pass certification?”
Criticising the filmmakers for not giving due attention to facts and details, noted Bengali actor Ritwick Chakraborty said, “I don’t know whether I should call it a bad research team or a poor screenplay. It is quite obvious that attempts were made to undermine the role of Bengali revolutionaries.”
The BJP, on the other hand, claimed that the TMC is trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill.
“At times in feature films, we have seen the names of characters have been changed. How is the BJP related to all of this? We are all aware how much honour the TMC has shown to our freedom fighters,” BJP MP Samik Bhattacharya said.
