Deepika Padukone starrer Chhapaak, based on the life of acid-attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal, is all set to release this Friday, on January 10.
However, even before its release, the film attracted controversy when Twitterati claimed that the film had changed the religious identity of the main accused.
Nadeem khan was accused of laxmi the acid attack survivor and now he is ajay sharma in movie..abey kya ho tum log..muslim terror is a menace all around the world and still turning it to hindus is shame.
— Dr. Shailender Gaur (@skg_905) January 8, 2020
The claim, that Nadeem Khan’s name was changed to Hindu-sounding Rajesh, trended on Twitter and was supported by political leaders and a section of media. However, people who attended a special screening of the film have stated that these claims are false and the movie has, in fact, stayed true to the story.
Shocking (or maybe not) that such demonstrable misinformation is carried. I watched the screening last night & can tell you with certainty the religion of attacker has not changed. Film has remained accurate to the case. Opinidia ko bachane ke chakkar mein khud Opindia ban gaye.. https://t.co/Jxc0ZCEDzJ
— Abhinandan Sekhri (@AbhinandanSekhr) January 8, 2020
#Chhapaak trends on Twitter – and no its screen villain is neither ‘Nadeem’ nor ‘Rajesh’.
— Radhika Sharma (@KhayalaBibi) January 8, 2020
Unlike the #FakeNews peddlers, I was fortunate to watch a special screening of the film last evening.
Here goes, my report for @PTI_News. https://t.co/HhNIEjRDya
Such false claims surfaced on social media after Deepika Padukone stood in solidarity with JNU students and joined the protest. In fact, #BoycottChhapaak had also trended on social media. People had even shared the same screenshot of a cancelled ticket of Chhapaak movie show as a way to protest against the movie.
