Netflix has halted the upcoming release of the film ‘Maharaj’, starring Aamir Khan’s son Junaid, which was originally scheduled to make it’s premier on the entertainment streaming platform on Friday, June 14th.
The news comes after the Gujarat High Court stayed its release following a petition by members of a Hindu sect who claimed the film would hurt their religious sentiments, according to IndiaTV News.
The film was met with backlash on social media, as many people on Wednesday using hashtags such as “Boycott Netflix” and “Ban Maharaj Film”, which resulted in the film negatively trending on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Khan was also trending on social media.
Per the report, a single-judge bench of Justice Sangeeta Vishen passed the order against the film and issued notices to the Centre, Netflix and Yash Raj Films, and the court has posted the matter for further hearing scheduled on June 18th.
The film is directed by Siddharth P Malhotra and produced by Aditya Chopra under YRF Entertainment and also stars Jaideep Ahlawat and was set to hit Netflix despite not releasing a trailer, and only releasing a movie poster.
Netflix and YRF released the following joint press announcement: “We kindly request you to HOLD on publishing your reviews for the film ‘Maharaj’ online, in print or on any social media platforms, given the ongoing proceedings. Thank you for your support and patience.
Sincerely, Team Netflix and YRF”.
According to the initial synopsis: “Maharaj is set in pre-independent India and is based on the Maharaj Libel Case of 1862, which was ignited by “allegations of misconduct by a prominent figure”. It follows Karsandas Mulji, a journalist and social reformer, who was a pioneering advocate for women’s rights and social reform.”
Given the intense emotion and opinion regarding the subject matter, there was a lot of noise on social media regarding the film, which is likely part of the reason why a trailer was never officially released.
