HC refuses to stay release of Kangana Ranaut's 'Manikarnika'

The Bombay High Court Thursday refused to give relief to a lawyer seeking a stay on the release of film "Manikarnika - The Queen of Jhansi" on the ground that it wrongly depicted historical facts.

Advocate Vivek Tambe, who claims to be a fifth generation descendant of the family of Rani Lakshmibai, the Queen of Jhansi, had moved the high court earlier this week claiming that the Kangana Ranuat-starrer had got several historical facts wrong.

According to the petitioner, the film shows the birth year of the queen of Jhansi as 1828.

However, her birth year was actually 1835, his plea said.

It further claimed that there are certain scenes which show that the queen suffered a miscarriage, which is not correct.

The producers of the film opposed the plea, saying the birth year was provided by historians and that there is no scene in the movie showing a miscarriage.

Central Board for Film Certification (CBFC) counsel Advait Sethna told a division bench of Chief Justice N H Patil and Justice N M Jamdar Thursday that its examining committee has given due consideration before certifying the movie.

"A disclaimer has also been included in the movie saying certain elements have been dramatised and fictionalised and that it does not intend to hurt any person's sentiments," Sethna said.

The bench, after hearing the arguments, said it was not inclined to grant interim relief by way of staying the release of the film.

The court directed the producer to file their affidavit responding to the petition in two weeks.

The movie is slated for release Friday.