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John Abraham’s Madras Cafe Stirs Up Controversy!
John Abraham’s JA Entertainment presents Madras Café, which releases globally on 23rd August 2013. The movie has caught some controversy even before its release and has been billed as one of the year’s most tense political thrillers. The film is set against the backdrop of the Sri Lanka civil war and the assassination of a key Indian political leader.
John Abraham stars as Captain Vikram Singh, an accomplished Para military officer recruited by the R&AW’s (India’s external security agency) Indian head Robin Dutt (RD) with the mandate to execute certain covert intelligence operations in Jaffna, Sri Lanka and to conduct peaceful provincial council elections.
Moviegoers will see John aka Captain Vikram work deftly magic to make significant breakthroughs in a scenario where the enemy has no face and the only counsel is ‘don’t get caught!. During the film he meets a charismatic and passionate journalist (played by Nargis Fakhri) who is determined to reflect the truth behind the civil war.
"It wasn’t that easy to shoot for this movie. There was one particular scene where I was sitting in the car and the other actors were firing gun shots and some pieces of glass hit me in the face, though my eyes were saved. That was indeed quite dangerous." says Nargis.
The story unfolds as their quest for the truth reveals a deeper conspiracy, by a faceless enemy, united to seize a common nemesis – India.
Vikram’s quest for the truth sees him team up with an ally in the field, an Indo-Western journalist named ‘Jaya’ (Nargis Fakhri). Together they set about finding the truth amongst a complex web of lies and deceit, and begin telling the world their incredible story.
The film features an accomplished cast, including Nargis Fakhri (Rockstar), Prosenjit Chatterjee, Rashi Khanna,Siddharth Basu and Agnello Dias. The stirring musical score comes from Shantanu Moitra (3 Idiots, Parineeta).
"Madras Café is close to my heart. It is a tense political thriller against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan civil war of the 1980’s. July 2013 marked the 30 year anniversary of the conflict, which finally ended in 2009 with the military defeat of the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Madras Café provides atimely reminder of the gruesome conflict that claimed thousands of Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim lives and left millions of people displaced and desolate. The war’s impact was felt across the world with both Eastern and Western nations involved in the negotiations for a resolution." says John Abraham.
The issue pertaining to Sri Lankan Tamils has always been a thorny question in Tamil Nadu, a state in India where Tamil chauvinism has been the bedrock of some of the Dravidian parties.
Bharatiya Janata Party State president Pon Radhakrishnan, in a statement issued in Chennai, said the release of the movie might lead to unwanted consequences.
In a relief for the John Abraham-starrer Madras Café, the Madras High Court on Wednesday allowed its release in Tamil Nadu on Friday but with a rider — that its Tamil version would not be released in Tamil Nadu without the Censor Board clearance.
"I would like to urge all of Chennai to support Madras Cafe as a film and release it as it is a credible film made with a lot of heart and it gives audiences something novel to be entertained about," John said in a statement.
"I don’t think so. This story is thoroughly researched from authentic sources. It cannot hurt the sentiments of Sri Lanka or Tamil Nadu, or in fact of anyone who sees the film. It is surely inspired by true events but it doesn’t mean it should be banned or face controversies." added the actor.
While actor-producer John Abraham urged “all of Chennai” to support the film’s release, Tamil organisations continued to protest against the film on Wednesday, with several student organisations and the BJP joining the fray.
"All my previous films were of different genres and Madras Café is an entirely new one. I haven’t touched such a topic before. I like to challenge my own abilities; therefore, I am not fearful of touching a new topic every time. Even if (people) they don't like it… it is okay. I am not bothered because if I get bothered I can't make films. I have to make many films… I have lot of story ideas. I have honestly made this film and I believe there is an audience to appreciate my honest effort." claims the director Shoojit Sircar.
Do you think America's 'freedom of speech' should be adopted to artform in India too?
Source: Sterling Media
Images : Sterling Media, Viacom 18, Madras Cafe/Facebook
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