In response to growing protest from Bangladeshis about Yash Raj Films’ latest film Gunday, the production company have apologised in a statement on their blog on Wednesday. However, the protesters are demanding changes to the first 11 minutes of the movie and an official apology from the production company through a press conference.
Gunday, released in India on February 14, depicts the bloody creation of Bangladesh as a 13-day battle between India and Pakistan beginning on December 3, 1971. The first 11 minutes of narration in the film say that the birth of Bangladesh was a result of the Indo-Pak war, which is not the case.
Through different blogs, Facebook groups and Twitter, Bangladeshis have called for a ban on the film. One of the most active Facebook groups, Khoma Chaibar Dabite Yash Raj Films-er Kache Protibadlipi Preron, with about 15,000 members, is consistently condemning the film in a constructive manner. Asaduzzaman Noor, cultural minister of Bangladesh, was quoted by local media as saying that his ministry would send an official statement in protest to its counterpart in India.
Yash Raj Films apologised on its blog on Wednesday for “any disrespect or hurt” the film has caused Bangladeshis. The statement says: “This was and is meant to be a fictional work and does not in any way project or disrespects any particular segment of society or persons or a nation.”
But, Bangladeshis all across the globe are not satisfied with the informal and incomplete apology as the film seriously misrepresents the historical facts that are considered as the pride of the nation.
Ali Abbas Zafar’s Gunday is based on the friendship of two boys Bikram and Bala who become refugees during the Bangladesh War of Liberation.
