Kolkata: No Bengali movie theatre showed Sanoj Mishra’s film, “The Diary of West Bengal,” even though the Calcutta High Court on Thursday declined to issue any interim orders regarding the film’s release. The film was to “depict the West Bengal CM in a bad light,” hence a PIL was filed in the Calcutta High Court to stop its release. The court had stated that constructive criticism had no place being suppressed in a democratic society.
When “The Kerala Story” was released in Bengal last year, almost the exact same thing happened—none of the theatres wanted to show the Vivek Agnihotri movie in Kolkata. Mishra informed TOI on Friday that his movie was now showing in up to 600 theatres throughout the country. That includes the screens in the south as well as Delhi and Mumbai. It seems that we also had aspirations to release the movie in Bengaluru. The movie’s Bengali premiere was approved by the court as well. In Bengal, we have representatives. The posters are ready. However, no one is endorsing the Bengal release, according to Mishra.
Distributors and exhibitors in the city, however, saw things differently. Navina Cinema’s Navin Choukhani stated: “I wasn’t asked to screen this movie. I think it’s wise to steer clear of showing such contentious films. Every day, I screen three episodes of “Stree 2.” As we enter the third week, the movie is performing incredibly well. Owner of Minar, Bijoli, and Chhabighar Suranjan Paul stated: “I have been managing a family business for generations.” I only want to show films that can be made into a profit. I avoid watching films that are contentious. So, I never intended to screen a movie like “The Diary of West Bengal.” Furthermore, nobody asked to view it with me either.
The film’s producer reportedly had no intention of releasing it in Bengal, according to trade insiders in Kolkata. It wasn’t me that the producer asked to distribute the movie. Distributor Bablu Damani stated, “I would have had no hesitations distributing it in Kolkata if the offer had come and the terms and conditions had matched.” Mishra asserted, however, that the film’s lack of Bengali release is because of a fear factor. “The exhibitors are worried that if my movie opens in Bengal, problems might arise. They wish to avoid taking the chance. What if someone protests the showing by lighting a theatre on fire? Who is going to make up for the losses? Still, I’m going to keep trying to get the movie released in Bengal,” he declared.
The Eastern India Motion Pictures Association (EIMPA) president, Piya Sengupta, stated: “No producer approached EIMPA regarding predicaments of the film’s release in Bengal.”
