For Entertainment Only --JPR
hinduonline.com
Deepa down but not out
By Our Staff Reporter
WATER is dead in the water and went belly up-NOT YET,
Raging fire, but NO WATER to hose it down----JPR
NEW DELHI, FEB. 8. Battle-weary but the fire still raging in them - this is the impression the
three women seeking to keep `Water' afloat sought to give after reaching here after a
week-and-a-half-long test of nerves with the powers that be in Uttar Pradesh.
WATER Contaminated and declared not potable-JPR
Returning to Delhi a day after the Uttar Pradesh Government imposed a fortnight-long ban on
the shooting in Varanasi, the director, Ms. Deepa Mehta, shied away from scribes at the
airport. Leading her lead players out of the airport lounge, a tired Ms. Mehta said she was
``heart-broken' at the turn of events but vowed to continue the project.
NO WATER IN VARANASI - TRY MECCA, VATICAN CITY OR JERUSALEM --JPR
Ms. Mehta said the team had few options left after ``the State Government made it clear that
there was no way we could shoot in Varanasi'. Asked whether she would shoot the film
outside Varanasi, Ms. Mehta walked away, saying she would have an answer by
Wednesday, when a press conference is scheduled. However, her spokesman later said,
``Varanasi is history' and indicated the possibility of the film being shot elsewhere.
Shabana blames UP of double talk, forked tongue, and back stab -JPR
Once Ms. Mehta left the airport with Ms. Nandita Das in tow, the spotlight shifted to Ms.
Shabana Azmi, who until then had remained a silent spectator to the goings-on. And true to
form, she began with a scathing attack on the Uttar Pradesh Government, accusing it of
conspiring to stall the shooting of the film at Varanasi.
``The State Government on the one hand pretended to help us, but on the other had
instructed the district administration not to allow the shooting under any circumstances,' Ms.
Azmi said about what happened in Varanasi.
Duplicity par excellence. HIRE the protesters as extras. Offer something they can't refuse and SHOOT WATER --JPR
The Rajya Sabha member said the State Government was indulging in duplicity and did not
agree that the locals were against the film and that the shooting had created a law and order
problem. ``We got full support from the people of the town. At most times there were no
more than a dozen people protesting against the film. And even when they managed to
mobilise support, their numbers never crossed 100.'
UP Govt's double talk with colluding KSRSS VHP KVP as per AZMI -JPR
Asserting that security arrangements were sufficient to keep the protesters at bay, Ms. Azmi
said that instead of arresting those who were breaking the law, ``the Government asked us to
pack up'. She charged the Kashi Sanskriti Raksha Sangharsh Samiti and the Vishwa Hindu
Parishad with going back on their assurance that they would allow the film to be made if
Kashi Vidwat Parishad - the highest body of Vedic scholars of Varanasi - cleared the script.
SANGH PARIVAR read the script in the wee hours and agreed - a case of double face. -JPR
``We were told by the Sangh Parivar outfits and Mr. Ashok Singhal that if the Parishad
cleared the script, we would be allowed to shoot. The script was read out to the Parishad till
3 in the morning a couple of days ago and they agreed there was nothing objectionable. But
still the U.P. Government did everything to disrupt the shooting of the film,' she said, adding
the controversy had shown that the writ of the Centre was not binding on the State
Government. |
