Vishwaroopam

Some developments behind "Vishwaroopam"
Veteran actor Kamal's magnum-opus of rs. 95-crore budget Vishwaroopam is caught behind the vote-bank politics. The film which was supposed to release on Jan 25, 2013 is banned by the Tamil Nadu government for 15 days. The matter went to Madras High Court, where the Judge watched the film (obviously by free) and likely to pronounce the verdict today (Jan 28, 2013).

The Muslim organisations in Tamil Nadu says the film had shown the Muslim community in bad light and hence they need to ban the film. 
Here are some developments about it:

• Police personnel have been deployed outside the high court ahead of the order.
• A judge from the High Court had reviewed the film to check if it indeed shows Muslims in poor light as has been claimed by several groups.
• Kamal Haasan, meanwhile, returned to Chennai early this morning after premiering Vishwaroopam in the US. The film has the Censor Board's clearance.
• The 95-crore film has stirred controversy with some groups protesting against the film's portrayal of Muslims. They claim that the movie is anti- Muslim.
• Kamal Haasan has, however, denied these allegations. He described the ban as "cultural terrorism" and the movie as "Muslim-friendly." He also held a special screening of the film for the protesting groups but failed to win their approval.
• DMK chief M Karunanidhi has urged protesting Muslim groups to hold talks with Kamal Haasan to resolve their differences. PMK founder S Ramadoss criticised the ban on the movie saying, "The Tamil Nadu government has been indulging in acts against the freedom of expression. If there is a law and order situation, it is the responsibility of the government to handle it. It is not appropriate to ban a movie."
• Southern superstar Rajinikanth appealed to Muslim groups to work with Kamal Haasan by suggesting changes that would not "affect the storyline". Lobbying against the ban on the film, he said, "I have known Kamal for 40 years. He would not hurt anyone." Veteran Tamil film director Bharatiraja said the ban would not only affect Kamal Haasan but all artistes. Other than these, actors Ajith, Jiiva, Siddharth, Prakashraj, Sarath Kumar, Radhika, Aamir Khan (Muslim) supported Kamal.
• On Facebook, users support Kamal and slammed the Tamil Nadu government for playing the cheap vote-bank politics; similarly Muslim organisations also in Facebook started "ban Vishwaroopam" page
• The blackout of Vishwaroopam has spread from Tamil Nadu to other cities like Hyderabad and Bangalore. The movie was initially released in Andhra Pradesh, but the distributor later decided to cancel screenings in the state capital of Hyderabad. The film did not screen at all in Bangalore. However, it continues to run in Kerala despite protests.
• The movie was removed from local cinemas in Malaysia a day after its release following a directive from the Home Ministry. Sri Lanka too has ordered a delay in the release in favour of a review by censors.