HYDERABAD: The atmosphere in the country is filled with terror inflicted by the state and organisations which control it, Vira Sathidar, the lead actor in Marathi film ‘Court’ which is India’s entry for Oscar awards, has said and declared that he will not accept awards from his “enemies’’.

Referring to artists, artistes and intellectuals returning awards, he said at a press conference here on Thursday that if they did not stand up when Advasis, Dalits and minorities were being discrimaned against, their silence would be viewed as betrayal by future generations. “I do not accept awards from my enemies. An organisation, which ignored the contribution of BR Ambedkar, is trying to saffronise the country by using the money meant for Dalit welfare schemes, and is burying Ambedkar’s ideology,” Sathidar said.

Revolutionary Writers’ Association (RWA) member P.Varavara Rao said that while prime minister Narendra Modi was a proclaimed Hindu, Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu were un-proclaimed Hindus. ‘’Naidu was responsible for the deaths of people during Pushkarams. Chandrasekhar Rao is not bothered about the suicides of farmers as much he is about Chandi Yagam. He does not help farmers or anybody in distress but spends crores of rupees on temples and on religious events. People who are ruling our country are practising Hindu principles,” he said.

Actor-director R Narayana Murthy said extremism of  any kind, Hindu or Islam, should be condemned. He said that violence in society picked up before and during elections. The politics of dividing people on the lines of religion should be opposed, he said.

Telugu writer M Bhoopal Reddy, who returned the Sahitya Akademi award, said that a writer who remained unaffected by the situation in society, was staying disconnected from it.

‘Court’ Depicts Ills in Society

Those who stand against injustice and who want to cleanse the society and the country might have cases registered against them and have to run around courts. This is what is showcased in the film, ‘Court’,  Vira Sathidar, lead actor, said, adding that he had experienced similar situations in the past.

Sathidar said that though he did not have confidence that the film would win Oscar, he said it had all that was required to be among the top five films in the competition. “Film critiques expressed confidence that ‘Court’ had the potential to win Oscar for the country. After it was selected for the Venice Film Festival, it won the best film and the best debut director awards. On the whole, the film won 32 national awards,” he said.

About it getting selected over Bahubali and Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Sathidar said he was not surprised about the selection as the film had been screened in other countries before it was released here. “It was screened in other countries and won many awards. With the money spent on Bahubali and Bajrangi Bhaijaan, we can make many movies,” he remarked.

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/hyderabad/Lead-Actor-in-Indias-Entry-for-Oscars-Alleges-State-Terror/2015/11/13/article3125396.ece