Gangubai Kathiawadi, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and featuring Alia Bhatt in the lead role, will be released in theatres on February 25, 2022. Due to the Covid-19 controversy, the film has had many reschedules in its release, making it one of the most awaited films in Bollywood. Now, just a few days after its debut, the film has sparked a slew of debates due to its theme.
The Bombay High Court postponed defamation charges against Alia Bhatt and Sanjay Leela Bhansali initiated by a lower court in 2021. In March 2002, a metropolitan magistrate issued summons against Alia Bhatt, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and his production firm Bhansali Productions Private Limited in response to a defamation complaint filed by Babuji Rao Shah, who claimed to be Gangubai’s adopted son.
The novel “The Mafia Queens of Mumbai,” according to Shah, was the inspiration for the movie. According to Shah, several sections of the work were defamatory, tarnished Gangubai’s reputation, and infringed on her right to privacy. Shah had requested a delay on the film’s release and also an injunction banning the novel’s writers/publishers from creating any third-party rights or publishing any other storey concerning her life before the High Court.
In view of the various challenges going before courts trying to block the movie’s distribution, the Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the film’s producers whether it would be feasible to modify the title of the picture. “Is it feasible to change the title?” Justice Banerjee inquired.
Gangubai Kathiawadi is based on the true storey of Gangubai, one among Mumbai’s red-light district’s most powerful, respected, as well as revered madams inside the 1960s.
Also Read: On writing Gangubai Kathiawadi songs, Sanjay Leela Bhansali
