What You Will See & What You Won’t In Indu Sarkar

A lot of misinformation—deliberate  or  otherwise—is being spread about Madhur Bhandarkar’s Indu Sarkar.

However a lot of what you are reading about the film is hearsay or mere conjecture based on  what is seen in the trailer. But here’s  a list of what you will and won’t see in the film.

1. The film is most certainly about the Emergency. In fact Bhandarkar has a mischievous  pun in the title. While Indu Sarkar is the protagonist Kirti Kulhari’s name . But Indu was also Mrs Indira Gandhi’s nickname. So the title also refers to Mrs Gandhi’s regime.
2. Not once in the film does Madhurmake any reference Mrs Gandhi. The actress Supriya Vinod who plays the charismatic  prime  minister is referred to as ‘Madame’.And Neil Nitin Mukesh who strongly resembles SanjayGandhi is not once referred to by that name.However what you will see are clearly specified references to the Emergency that was declared in 1977 by the Congress I ,leaving no doubt about the film’s intentions.
3. Kriti Kulhari plays a stammering protagonist. This is  the second stammering hero in July after RanbirKapoor in Jagga Jasoos. What we won’t see  is Kriti Kulhari bursting repeatedly into songs to put her point across.Pritam, gone.
4. Contrary to reports in a section  of the media Indu Sarkar has not been cleared by the Film Certificate Appellate Tribunal also know as the Tribunal. It has been cleared by the Revising Committee of the Censor Board Of Film Certification after several cuts were implemented.So you won’t see the uncut version. In all 4 minutes and 22 seconds have been cut.And  to make sure that the version shown in theatres is the censored version the CBFC has asked for a written undertaking from Madhur Bhandarkar that no changes would be made.
5. Amrit Nahata’s Kissa Kursi Ka was the first film on Mrs Indira Gandhi and her son Sanjay Gandhi’s activities during the Emergency. It  featured Shabana Azmi as the mute ‘Junta’. The  film was  banned and the prints were burnt. Most of us didn’t get to see that film. However we will soon see what Bhandarkar has done with the same.