Controversial Aamir Khan Starrer Movie PK Added To Collection Of National Film Archive Of India

The Amir Khan starrer controversial movie 'PK', which released in 2014 and got mired in controversy over hurting religious sentiments of Hindus, has been added to the collection of the National Film Archives of India (NFAI).

The original camera negative of Rajkumar Hirani directed film has been added by the NFAI in its collection.

Hirani handed over the the original camera negative of PK to NFAI director Prakash Magdum in Mumbai on Tuesday (6 July), according to a Ministry of Information and Broadcasting release.

“It was important to preserve the negative and I am very happy that it would be preserved in NFAI at Pune. It is the duty of a filmmaker to ensure that the films are preserved and I appeal to all filmmakers to support NFAI in this important cause,” said Rajkumar Hirani.

NFAI director Magdum said, “We are happy to continue our association with Mr Hirani as his earlier acclaimed films are also being preserved at NFAI. It is wonderful to add PK in our collection, especially because it was shot on celluloid.”

The transition from celluloid to digital in terms of production of films in India happened during 2013-14. Therefore, it is all the more important to have this film for preservation, Magdum added.

The development gains significance as the movie was mired in controversy after its release, with Hindu rights group including Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) alleging that the movie insults Hindu deities.

The Hindu activists protested against the lead actor Amir Khan and demanded a ban on the screening of the movie. They alleged that the movie not only portrays Lord Shiva in a derogatory manner but also showed pamphlets declaring Hindu deities like Hanuman and Laxmi as “missing”.

The activists had further said that the Bollywood was afraid to make movies portraying Muslim clergy or the Church in a bad light, however, it keeps hurting the sentiments of Hindus by insulting their gods and showing Hindu gurus as villains.