PIL against 'Babarr' for negative portrayal of Muslims

A PIL was today filed in the Bombay High Court seeking a ban on film Baabarr, released last week, for alleged negative portrayal of Muslims.

Questioning the censor board's clearance to the film, petitioner Amar Hussein Mukeri, a Mumbai-based businessman, has alleged that certain characters and incidents are clearly identifiable with real life personalities like Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mayawati and screening of the film may lead to "public disharomony".

The film, produced by Riddhi Siddhi Films Pvt Ltd. and starring Om Puri and Mithun Chakraborty, among others, is set in  Hindi heartland.

Contending that the Central Board of Film Certification should not have cleared the film for public viewing even with `A' certificate, the petitioner has objected to the depiction of Muslims as "violent and antisocial".

Seeking an "immediate ban" on the film, the petitioner said it has hurt his religious sentiments and would evoke similar feelings among fellow Muslims. The PIL would come up for hearing on September 17.