Mira Nair, Hansal Mehta shocked over Sadaf Jafar's arrest, demand release of actor

Filmmakers Mira Nair, Hansal Mehta and "Gully Boy" star Vijay Varma are appalled by the arrest of actor and Congress party worker Sadaf Jafar and have demanded for her release from the jail.

Jafar, who is part of Nair's upcoming BBC series "A Suitable Boy", was arrested last week during a protest against the amended citizenship act in Lucknow.

"This is our India now - Appalling: our #SuitableBoy actress, Sadaf Jafar, beaten and jailed for peaceful protest in Lucknow! Join me in demanding her release," the filmmaker posted on Twitter on Sunday.

Mehta said he was shocked by the news.

"It is shocking. And telling. How the people have shaken up an establishment that finds no other alternative than to brutalise in the face of protest. #ReleaseSadafJafar," he wrote on the microblogging site.

Varma, who worked with Jafar on "A Suitable Boy", said her arrest was the "lowest low".

"I was shooting with her a fortnight ago. And now she's in jail! This is insane. This is the lowest low," he tweeted.

On Sunday, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also demanded Jafar's immediate release.

In a tweet, Priyanka said, "Our party worker Sadaf Zafar was telling the cops to catch unruly elements, but, the UP Police beat her up badly and arrested her. She has two children. This is high-handedness (jyaadtee) and this type of oppression will not work.