Sampat Pal, the leader of the central Indian, all-female vigilante group Gulabi Gang, may have filed a case against the producers of the Bollywood film Gulaab Gang but says that in the actress Madhuri Dixit’s character she finds a reflection of her own life so stark that it makes her feel “it was me on screen”.
“The battle about the movie has not ended and I will keep it going till my demands are met, but Madhuri has definitely impressed me with her acting skills in the movie,” said Pal. “Madhuri’s acting did remind me of my journey and of the times I have been through. I felt it was me on the screen,” she said, adding that she has nothing against the actors and her fight is against the film’s producers.
Sampat Pal moved the Delhi high court last week, seeking a stay on the film’s release claiming that her permission was not sought prior to the making of the film and had alleged that it contains defamatory content which would adversely affect her reputation. The court on Thursday allowed the film to be released across the country but with a disclaimer that it has nothing to do with the life of Pal and her organisation.
Pal said she watched the movie on Friday, adding that the incidents portrayed were similar to her story, which is recounted in Amana Fontella Khan’s book Pink Sari Revolution. Gulaab Gang is out now in UAE cinemas.
[ artslife@thenational.ae ]
