A Mumbai court has directed a probe against actor-director Mahesh Manjrekar based on a complaint by an NGO (non-governmental organization) over the portrayal of child artistes in the film Nay Varan Bhat Loncha Kon Nay Koncha (2022).
The court directed the police on 19 February to probe the makers of the film, including director Manjrekar. The filmmaker appealed to the Bombay high court for protection from coercive action, but the plea was rejected.
A special court under the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act issued the directive to the police on the basis of a complaint by social activist Seema Deshpande through her lawyer Prakash Salsingkar.
The Press Trust of India news agency reported that the complainant said the trailer for the film, which was released in theatres last month, contained 'objectionable scenes' featuring underage actors. The complaint, which relates to sex scenes involving the teenage protagonist and his aunt, was taken note of by special judge SN Shaikh.
#BombayHighCourt refuses to protection from coercive action to Marathi actor and filmmaker #MaheshManjrekar in the POCSO case pertaining to alleged explicit sexual content in a film scene involving minor.
— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) February 25, 2022
Matter to be heard on Monday by regular Bench. pic.twitter.com/4whN0hHP0J
Based on a story by Jayant Pawar, Nay Varan Bhat Loncha Kon Nahi Koncha (2022) was released in theatres on 14 January. The Bombay Times supplement of The Times of India newspaper quoted Manjrekar saying, "Have I shown any nudity in the film? No. Have I made a porn film? No. Sure, there's strong language and bold scenes, but we didn't expect this kind of a backlash."
The trailer for the film had generated controversy when the National Commission for Women objected to some of the scenes portrayed in it. The makers then agreed to remove the scenes from the trailer.
The filmmaker will be heard on Monday by a regular bench of the Bombay high court.