Hindi
Bhandarkar’s docu on Kashmir widows irks Censor Board
MUMBAI: Madhur Bhandarkar‘s upcoming documentary Village of Widows is stuck within the corridors of the Censor Board (CB). After the first viewing of the documentary, CB officials had raised their eyebrows on two important portions of the film and referred the film to its Reviewing Committee.
On its part, the committee staunchly asked for two major portions to be chopped off for it to get a clearance certificate. One is the footage of slain former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto giving an anti-India speech and propagating terrorism against India by which she advocates the need of freedom of Kashmir from India. The other one is where the Indian national flag is shown being burnt in Kashmir.
Questions director Ashoke Pandit, “None of the said footage is a figment of anybody‘s imagination or work of fiction. I copied the footage from TV grabs and inserted it in my film. These scenes are only a repeat of what occurred earlier. Tomorrow, if some film incorporates the effects of the dastardly acts of the Maoists, would they ask for the scenes to be deleted?”
Village of Widows is based in a small village Kubwara located atop a mountain on the Indian side of the Indo-Pak border. This village has only widows and orphans as all the men have been abducted and taken across the border to take part in anti-Indian activities and become terrorists, Pandit says.
“While the women there resort to begging or indulge in all sorts of illicit activities to make their living, the children are mere spectators of the hapless conditions all around,” Pandit reveales.
“The main cause of my making the film was to make people aware of the ground realities. By this, I wanted some organisation to adopt these 150 odd orphans and guide them the right way lest they turn against the country when they grow up,” adds Bhandarkar.
Pandit says, “We have made this documentary with a cause and come what may, I will not allow any of the scenes to be deleted.”
Hindi
Dhurandhar 2 hit by YouTube leak amid record box office run
Cam-rip surfaces online but blockbuster streak continues at record pace
MUMBAI: It has been a dramatic week for Dhurandhar: The Revenge. Even as the espionage thriller smashes box office records, a piracy scare briefly threatened to steal its thunder after a full-length version surfaced on YouTube.
The leak emerged on March 30 via a channel titled “A2z movie”, which uploaded what appeared to be a cam-recorded print of the film. Clocking in at nearly three hours and 49 minutes, the footage was reportedly blurry but complete enough to spark spoilers and fan outrage online.
Soon after, users on X began flagging the issue, explicitly naming the “A2z movie” channel in their posts while tagging the film’s makers and urging swift legal action. Fans of director Aditya Dhar and lead star Ranveer Singh were particularly vocal, helping the issue gain rapid traction.
Within hours, the video was taken down, likely through a mix of platform detection systems and intervention by producers Jio Studios and B62 Studios.
Despite the leak, the film’s theatrical run remains virtually unshaken. As of March 31, the sequel has raked in an estimated Rs 872.17 crore net in India, with worldwide collections soaring to Rs 1,392.23 crore. Its Hindi opening day alone brought in Rs 102.55 crore, setting a new benchmark.
In a notable milestone, the film has matched Pushpa 2 as the fastest Indian release to cross the Rs 1,000 crore mark globally, achieving the feat in just seven days.
Interestingly, the version leaked online is believed to be an earlier cut. Midway through its theatrical run, the makers issued revised prints after eagle-eyed viewers spotted a fleeting editing error involving a cameraman’s reflection. The corrected version now plays across cinemas, adding an unusual twist to the film’s release journey.
Directed by Aditya Dhar, the high-stakes sequel stars Ranveer Singh alongside Sanjay Dutt, R. Madhavan, Arjun Rampal and Sara Arjun. The film has drawn praise for its scale and action sequences, though some critics have pointed to its intense violence and layered political themes.
For now, piracy may have made noise, but it has not slowed the juggernaut. If anything, the episode underlines the film’s cultural grip, proving that even a leak cannot derail a box office storm already in full force.
