Angry farmers protesting against the Central Farm laws have forced several cinema halls across Punjab including five cinema halls in Hoshiarpur to stop the screening of the Akshay Kumar Sooryavanshi. According to reports, the protesting farmers tore apart movie posters outside theatres to oppose Akhshay Kumar for not joining in the farmers’ protest. The farmers have also vowed to halt the screening of the movie in theatres until the three farm laws are repealed.
BKU activists led by district president Swaran Dhugga organized a protest march in Hoshiarpur from the local Shaheed Udham Singh Park to Swaran cinema to stop the screening of the movie.
Reportedly, farmers have stopped the screening of the movie in Barnala, Jalalabad, Moga and Zirakpur. They have alleged that Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar supported all the three agricultural laws passed by the central government and hence they could not allow the movie to be screened.
Farmer leader Manpreet Singh Sandhu said that Akshay Kumar praises Prime Minister Modi for his personal interest. Hence no Akshay Kumar film will be allowed to run in Punjab.
In Moga, the theatre owners themselves took down the posters of Sooryavanshi movie and closed the screening after protest by the farmers. According to the manager of a cinema hall named Raj Kumar, the district administration had given orders to keep the atmosphere calm which made him stop the screening of the movie.
Farmers also claimed that the movie was made to promote Prime Minister Narendra Modi and that Industrialists like Ambani had invested money in film production. Actor Sunny Deol, MP from Gurdaspur in Punjab, was also accused of not raising his voice in favour of farmers.