Thackeray: 'No Other Film will be Allowed to Release with Bala Saheb Biopic,' Says Shiv Sena Worker

Mumbai: A local Shiv Sena leader said Thursday that no other film would be allowed to clash with the biopic of Sena founder Bal Thackeray, set to release next month.

The party, however, distanced itself from the threat. Bala Lokare, secretary of Chitrapat Sena, a Sena-affiliated film workers’ union, said in a social media post that the party will not allow any other film to release on January 25.

If anyone tried to release a film on that day, he will get a reply in “the Sena’s style”, he said. The biopic “Thackeray”, produced by Sena MP Sanjay Raut and starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui, is slated for release on January 25.

Raut clarified that Lokare was not articulating the party’s position. “This was the Shiv Sainik’s (Sena worker’s) personal stand. This stand has not been adopted by the party,” Raut said.

The film’s trailer was launched Wednesday. According to media reports, the Central Board of Film Certification has taken exception to certain scenes in the film referring to Babri Masjid and the south Indian community in Mumbai