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When filmmaker Tony D'Souza (who directed Akshay Kumar in Blue and Boss) woke up on Thursday morning he had no idea what nightmarish incidents lay in store for him. A police squad from Punjab swooped down on Tony and new director Ajay K Pannalal with an arrest warrant for hurting religious sentiments.
Initially Tony was completely at sea about the allegation. It took him a while to figure that he was in serious trouble for a sequence in Behen Hogi Teri the new rom-com produced by Tony and directed by Pannalal, featuring Rajkummar Rao and Shruti Haasan where the former is seen dressed as Lord Shiva.
A close friend of Tony says the director is in state of shock. "He had no idea of what was going on. And then when he grew aware of the situation he found himself battling the law on his own. His co-producer Amul Vikas Mohan and Nitin Upadhyay have switched off their mobiles and gone underground, leaving Tony to face the music.
The Punjab police allegedly escorted Tony to Punjab from Mumbai on Friday.
I managed to have brief conversations with Tony on Thursday night and Friday morning and all he said was, "I can't say anything right now.
It is significant that Tony is booked for showing an actor dressed as Lord Shiva when Raj Kumar Hirani's PK had a whole lengthy chase sequence featuring an actor dressed as Lord Shiva which ended in the loo.
According to a source close to Tony, "This is what we've come to in this country. Filmmakers will be picked randomly and taken away. No one is sure any more of what causes offence and what is permissible in our cinema.
Jodha Akbar
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