The Gujarat High Court has formally disposed of a petition seeking the removal of a contentious dialogue from the movie 'Dhurandhar'. This decision came after the filmmakers submitted to the court that the specific objectionable words in question had already been muted in the film.
Petition Filed by Baloch Community Members
The legal challenge was initiated by two members of the Baloch community – Yasin Allarakha Baloch and Ayub Balekhan Baloch. They took issue with a line delivered in the film by a policeman character portrayed by actor Sanjay Dutt. The petitioners argued that the dialogue referencing their community was delivered in a "derogatory and contemptuous manner", which hurt their sentiments and portrayed the community in a negative and defamatory light.
In their submission, they further contended that the film's visuals and words concerning the Baloch community were "anti-caste and racial" in nature. The petition was directed against the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and the filmmakers, seeking directions to have the dialogue excised from the movie.
Court's Proceedings and Filmmakers' Submission
During the hearing on Friday, Advocate Salil Thakore, representing filmmaker Aditya Dhar along with production houses Jio Studios and B62 Studios Pvt Ltd, made a crucial statement before the court. He informed the bench that the producers had already muted the two objectionable words in compliance with the Cinematograph Act rules. These rules permit producers to edit a film even after it has been certified by the relevant authority.
The oral order from the Gujarat HC recorded this submission, stating, "(The) advocate for the respondents makes a statement that the word which is objected to by the petitioners herein has already been muted. Therefore, no grievance survives in the present writ petition now." The court also noted that the counsel for the petitioners did not dispute this claim by the respondents.
Previous Hearing and Court's Query
In an earlier hearing held on December 24, the High Court had orally questioned the petitioners on how they were prejudiced by the dialogue, given that the film 'Dhurandhar' is set in a region outside India. The court had asked the petitioners to "substantiate" the grievance outlined in their petition during that proceeding.
With the filmmakers' assurance that the disputed words were no longer audible in the film, the court concluded that the petition's core issue had been addressed. The final order stated, "In view thereof, the present writ petition is rendered infructuous. Disposed of accordingly." This brings the legal dispute surrounding this specific dialogue in the film to a close.
