"Fortunately my shooting has resumed," says Prakash Jha after shooting for Ashram was vandalized

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Sections claiming to belong to the Bajrang Dal vandalized and ransacked the set of Prakash Jha’s Ashram on October 24. The third season of the series featuring Bobby Deol as a debauched corrupt self-appointed godman was being shot in Bhopal when the ugly incident happened.

Director Prakash Jha was also manhandled and ink was thrown on his face. Luckily he did not suffer any grievous injuries. Speaking exclusively to this writer Prakash Jha said, “All is well now. Thank you for your concern. The cops and the administration were prompt and effective. And luckily the shooting has resumed.”

The Producers Guild of India strongly condemned what it called “the brazen acts of violence, harassment and vandalism faced by the crew involved in the production of the series Ashram in Bhopal.”

The Guild went to add, “Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident and the Guild is alarmed to note the frequency with which both the production and exhibition sectors are severely and illegally disrupted by various elements with impunity…Content production contributes significantly to local economies, generates employment and promotes tourism which is why authorities in India and across the world formulate policies to attract producers to their respective regions. However, even more than incentives and benefits the very minimum that production units should expect is for these authorities to provide the guarantees of safety and security for their units. We urge the relevant authorities to take immediate and strict action against the perpetrators of these acts of violence and to bring them to justice."

In November 2020 the Karni Sena, never known to shy away from controversies, had galvanized into action against the second season of Ashram

According to the Karni Sena, the series was an insult to the Hindu religion. They sent a long legal notice to Prakash Jha stating, among other things, “The said web series have (sic.) deeply hurt the sentiments of the people at large and it is also going to spread negative goodwill(sic.) about Hindu religion on(sic.) future generations to come.”

When I had reached out to Prakash Jha for a reaction to the Karni Sena’s demand for a ban on Season 2 of Ashram, he had replied, “Who am I to make a judgment on their demand? We had 400 million-plus views for the first season. I think viewers are the best placed to decide on ‘negative goodwill’. Shall we leave it to them?”

The Karni Sena had earlier accused Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Deepika Padukone of denigrating the Hindi religion in Padmaavat and had even threatened to cut off her nose.

Also Read: Bajrang Dal vandalises Bobby Deol’s Ashram 3 set in Bhopal; Prakash Jha and crew members roughed up