Demonstration outside cinema hall in Bengal to allow screening of 'The Bengal Files'

Kolkata, Sep 6 (PTI) A group of people demonstrated in front of a cinema hall at Habra in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on Saturday, demanding the screening of Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri's 'The Bengal Files', which revisits the 1946 Calcutta Killings.

The film, which was released countrywide on August 5, is not being screened in theatres across West Bengal, with Agnihotri alleging political pressure and intimidation by the ruling TMC behind what he called an "unofficial ban".

The group, with reported allegiance to certain Hindu outfits, gathered in front of Rupkotha Cinema at Habra, holding the tricolour and posters of the film, demanding its screening, a district police officer said.

They, however, did not carry flags of any political party or organisation, he said, adding the demonstration was peaceful.

Meanwhile, Agnihotri said in a post on X: “Finally, Bengalis in Bengal are protesting at cinema halls against the unofficial ban of #TheBengalFiles.” A spokesperson of a movie distributor in Bengal and the northeast, told PTI that while the film has released in theatres outside Bengal, “due to the existing state government rules for allotting prime time slots for Bengali movies, and demand for other keenly anticipated Bollywood and Hollywood films, ‘The Bengal Files’ could not get a single window in either multiplexes or single screens .” ‘The Bengal Files’ revisits the August 1946 Calcutta Killings, which were triggered by the Muslim League’s call for ‘Direct Action Day’, leading to widespread communal violence and casualties.

TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh had earlier accused Agnihotri of trying to drive a wedge in society by his "propaganda" film to fulfil the BJP's political agenda.

The film features Mithun Chakraborty, Anupam Kher, Pallavi Joshi, Saswata Chatterjee, Darshan Kumarr and Sourav Das in leading roles. PTI SUS RBT