A group of youngsters who chose to sit through the national anthem at a cinema were asked whether they were “Pakistani terrorists” and heckled by a group led by a film actor last week, it has emerged now.
The incident at the PVR Orion Mall in Bangalore on October 23 was filmed by actor Arun Gowda, along with a person whose identity is not clear. Arun, an up-and-coming actor, later said he went to the movie with a friend but it was not clear if it is the same person.
In January 2018, after a spate of complaints that even physically challenged people and the elderly were coming under attack for not standing up, the Supreme Court had modified its 2016 order and said playing the national anthem before movies was optional.
In Bangalore last week, the protesters eventually forced the filmgoers to leave the cinema before they could watch Asuran, the Tamil film being screened.
“If you are against India, I am ready to fight. Jai Hind. Bolo Bharat Mata Ki Jai,” an unidentified man can be heard saying in the video. “Our soldiers are standing in Kashmir and fighting for us… and you can’t stand for 52 seconds?”
“Are you a Pakistani terrorist?” yelled the same man.
“You are standing on Indian soil…. You can’t spare 52 seconds for your country, and you have the audacity to sit here and watch a three-hour movie?” he went on.
Arun, the actor, made an on-camera appearance. “Hi guys, they did not stand up when the national anthem was played. They are asking if we would file a case against them (if they don’t stand up). Look at these guys… let’s look at their faces once again,” Arun said before focusing on those seated.
All of a sudden, a middle-aged man stands up and tells the group not to touch the youngsters. “Don’t touch them, don’t touch them,” he said.
As if that warning had an impact, Arun can be heard saying: “Please send them happily, please send them happily.”
A source at the PVR Orion Mall said the youngsters had filed a complaint with the company management based in Delhi. “All such complaints go to Delhi and then they launch an inquiry,” the official said.
A spokesperson for the Delhi-based PVR group told this newspaper that such complaints usually went to the legal cell that would take necessary action.
With the incident attracting plenty of comments — for and against the vigilantism — Arun took to Facebook on Tuesday to explain.
“First of all, no one manhandled or even touched them. We sent them out for speaking badly about the Indian Army,” he said, seeking to shift the focus from sitting through the national anthem to alleged comments against the army.
According to him, the youngsters were first told to stand up by someone who sat next to him but one of them responded: “I don’t care. So what?”
The actor ended the video message with “Jai Hind, Jai Shri Ram.”