Supreme Court directs makers of Netflix film Ghooskhor Pandat to change title, says it denigrates a particular community

Ghooskhor Pandat marks Ritesh Shah's directorial debut and stars Manoj Bajpayee in the lead. It is produced by Neeraj Pandey.

The Supreme Court has directed the makers of the upcoming Hindi film Ghooskhor Pandat to change its title as it is ‘denigrative’ of a particular community. In its order passed on Thursday, the apex court directed the makers of the Netflix film to release it with an alternative title.

Ghooskhor Pandat stars Manoj Bajpayee in the lead role.

SC directs Ghooskhor Pandat makers to change title

News agency ANI reported that a bench led by Justice BV Nagarathna warned the respondent filmmakers that the Court cannot permit any section of society to be denigrated by the title of this film and other offensive material in the film (if any).

The film had been announced by Netflix during its Next on Netflix India slate earlier this month, with a first-look teaser. However, the title had drawn criticism from members of the Brahmin community, who called it offensive and derogatory. The contention was with using the word ‘ghooskhor’, meaning corrupt or one who gives bribe, with pandat, a term for Brahmins or Hindu priests.

The backlash faced by the film

The immediate backlash saw on-ground protests where effigies of the film's makers, producer Neeraj Pandey and director Ritesh Shah, were burned, along with opposition to lead actor Manoj Bajpayee and the streaming platform Netflix, where the film was supposed to be released.

After an FIR was filed against the film on the directive of UP CM Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow, producer Neeraj Pandey issued a statement defending the film, while acknowledging the hurt caused by the title. He also took down all the promotional material, including the first-look teaser that had been shared on YouTube and social media.

Pandey, who has produced and co-written the film alongside director Ritesh Shah, apologised for the hurt caused by the title. "We understand that the title of the film has caused hurt to some viewers, and we genuinely acknowledge those feelings." The filmmaker added that all promotional material for the film, including the first look teaser, has been taken down. "In light of these concerns, we have decided to take down all promotional materials for the time being, as we believe the film should be experienced in its entirety and understood in the context of the story we intended to tell, rather than judged on partial glimpses. I look forward to sharing the film with audiences soon."

All about the film

The film stars Manoj Bajpayee, along with Nushrat Bharuccha, Saqib Saleem, Akshay Oberoi, and Divya Dutta. Written by Neeraj Pandey and Ritesh Shah, the film marks Shah's directorial debut. It is slated to release on Netflix later this year. No release date has been announced.