Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri has alleged that the West Bengal government and police are discouraging theatre owners from screening his upcoming film The Bengal Files. The movie, which hits theatres this Friday, deals with one of the most sensitive chapters of Bengal’s history the 1946 communal riots.
Vivek Agnihotri on the Issue
Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Agnihotri said the situation is deeply concerning. “Whatever the West Bengal government is doing is illegal and unconstitutional. We are planning to file a writ petition, but will decide based on what happens tomorrow, and accordingly, we will take legal action,” he stated.
He further claimed that many theatre owners, including managers of leading multiplex chains, reported threats from police. “A lot of theatre owners have said that the police have been threatening them of dire consequences if they release the film. They are like, ‘What will we do if they barge in and destroy our property?’” Agnihotri alleged.
Appeal to the President
Pallavi Joshi, Agnihotri’s wife, co-producer, and one of the lead actors in the film, has appealed directly to President Droupadi Murmu for intervention. Agnihotri said the movie has been dubbed in Bengali so that “lakhs of Bengali people who want to watch it” can access it.
Anupam Kher Congratulated to the whole team fro its release on X,
Congratulations and best wishes to @vivekagnihotri #PallaviJoshi @AbhishekOfficl and the entire team of #TheBengalFiles on the release of the film today. It is an important film of our times. Please go and watch it in the theatres! 😍🙏 pic.twitter.com/kAOD4Me88t
— Anupam Kher (@AnupamPKher)
About The Bengal Files
The film focuses on the violence of Direct Action Day in August 1946, when communal riots broke out in Calcutta (now Kolkata) after the Muslim League called for a nationwide protest demanding Pakistan. The unrest led to large-scale killings, arson, and displacement, leaving a deep scar on Bengal’s history.
Agnihotri’s project has already attracted controversy its trailer launch in Kolkata faced disruption, and two Bengali actors withdrew from the film citing personal reasons.
The Bengal Files serves as the final chapter in Agnihotri’s Files trilogy, after The Tashkent Files (2019) and The Kashmir Files (2022). The cast includes Mithun Chakraborty, Anupam Kher, Pallavi Joshi, Saswata Chatterjee, and Darshan Kumarr.
Also Read: Cast of The Bengal Files: Find Out The Actors Behind Vivek Agnihotri’s Intense Political Drama
