Those who don't like it are free not to watch it: MoS SP Singh Baghel on 'Adipurush'

Amid the row over the Bollywood film Adipurush, Union Minister S P Singh Baghel on Monday said those who do not like the movie are free not to watch it.

He was reacting to allegations levelled by Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav that the movie was part of an "agenda".

The Union minister of state for health and family welfare was in Bhadohi to attend a programme on the completion of nine years of the Narendra Modi government at the Center.

Asked about the SP chief's remark, the Union minister said, "People doing politics of appeasement are very conscious of their vote bank and give such statements. Similar statements were made on the Kashmir Files even though that film is a depiction of what happened in Kashmir."

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"Literature is a mirror of the society, be it writing or films or television. Those who do not like it should not go to see it, but literature is the mirror of society. Even if it is plated in silver or gold, mirrors do not lie," Baghel added.

Adipurush, a retelling of the epic Ramayana directed by Om Raut, was released on Friday. It has been panned over its colloquial dialogues and controversial depiction of some characters.

Joining the chorus against the film, SP chief Yadav said the Censor Board should check the "political character certificate" of those who play with the faith of people by making films with an agenda using the money of their political masters. He, however, did not mention the name of the film.

"Has the Censor Board become Dhritarashtra," he asked in a tweet. Dhritarashtra, the father of the Kauravas, was a blind king in the epic Mahabharata.

Seers in Ayodhya have demanded an immediate ban on Adipurush, saying its dialogues made their "blood boil" as different parts of Uttar Pradesh witnessed protests against the film on Monday.