negativecharac Of Prem Creates trouble .

Mizos debar wicked Prem

Kasauti star Manoj Bohra is uninvited from prestigious Peace festival in Mizoram after women protest that a villain can never be their chief guest

TV star Manoj Bohra never dreamt that his popularity would one day turn against him so drastically.

The actor who plays the diabolical Prem in Balaji's Kasauti Zindagi Kay was supposed to be the chief guest at the prestigious Mizoram Peace Festival last week but was 'uninvited' at the nth hour after protests across the state from women who said they did not want a villain as a chief guest.

The Mizoram Peace Festival conducted under the guidance of the state government is held each year in capital Aizawl to celebrate 20 years of the Mizoram Accord.

The state was declared a disturbed area after the Mizo National Front took up arms in 1966 and peace was restored in the state after 20 years when Laldenga signed a historic peace agreement with Rajiv Gandhi in June 1986.

Manoj's stylish look in the serial and saturnine character are a big hit in Mizoram and which was why he was invited. But turned out his devilish Prem forever creating trouble for his mother, was taken a tad too seriously. After the older women protested that the anti-hero was not the right choice for a chief guest at a peace festival, the chorus was taken up by the all-powerful Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP).

The MZP is the state's largest student body and a virtual power unto themselves in Mizoram. When they issued an edict barring Manoj Bohra from entering the state, the organisers had little option but to uninvite the star.

"We'd have loved to have him as a celebrity guest for our festival. But the Mizo Zirlai Pawl threatened to take action if Prem made an appearance," said Malsawmi, a representative of the organisers, Entertainment Mizoram. "We were under a lot of pressure and eventually decided to not ruffle feathers," he said, adding that they did pay Manoj Rs 75,000 as cancellation fees.

While, elsewhere director of Entertainment Mizoram, Laldingliana, said that the MZP's insistence on cancelling Bohra's appearance could boomerang on the Mizo community as being communal. The state has a predominantly Christian population.

For his part Manoj who is also seen in another Star Plus show, Shararat, had sought leave from his producers and had packed his bags. "They did not say a direct no to me," he disclosed. "First they said they had to postpone the ceremony and then they kept blocking my dates for a month before finally cancelling."

Manoj says he took the rejection quite badly. "What's the point in barring my entry in Mizoram? I'm an actor and so what if I am playing a negative character in a show? I took it very personally when I first learnt about it. And I'm still confused about the actual reasons that could have led to the situation," said the perplexed actor.

Just the flip side of working for the Balaji soap factory perhaps?