Samajwadis 'feign ignorance' about film on Mulayam

When the first poster of a film titled 'Main Mulayam Singh Yadav' was released on the social media, the Samajwadi Party and its leaders were apparently caught unawares.

While SP chief and party patron's son Akhilesh Yadav did not react to the news, senior party leaders wondered if this was an authorised biography.

"As far as I know, Netaji (Mulayam Singh) has not approved of the biopic. There have been no interactions between the film makers and Netaji in the past several months and Netaji, who usually discusses everything with us, has never even mentioned the film," said a former SP MP.

Most of the leaders contacted agreed to speak only on condition of anonymity on the issue. "We will wait for the party president to give his reaction before we become more vocal," said a leader.

A party spokesman said he too, learnt about the film on the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister when the news of the poster release broke on Thursday.

"If the film is truly a biopic, the filmmakers should have, at least, spoken to those who have worked closely with Netaji. How can one make a film without knowing the basics?" asked a former Mulayam associate, who has now retired.

Main Mulayam Singh Yadav' is directed by Suvendu Raj Ghosh and produced by Meena Sethi Mondal.

The film stars Amit Sethi in the title role and other actors include Mimoh Chakravarti, Govind Namdev, Mukesh Tiwari and Zarina Wahab.

Interestingly, the film's posters show the Karnataka Vidhan Sabha in the backdrop instead of the UP Vidhan Sabha.

The film focuses on 'He came and changed the political scenario, when capitalism and bureaucracy were main pillars of politics.'

According to the director, "Mulayam Singh Yadav the name itself is the resonance of power. His journey should be unveiled to the people. What he did for his state and the people is astonishing. I am honoured to reveal his untold story in front of the world. This is going to be the first standing biopic of a politician based on true events."

Meanwhile, Mulayam Singh Yadav, who has been unwell for quite some time, was unavailable for comment but a close family member said that they were not aware of any film being made on Netaji's life.

"There were some proposals in the past but nothing came out of it. We do not know anything about this film," said a family member.

Tags: Cinema, Showbiz, National, Politics