Madras High Court quashes plea seeking ban on superstar Vijay's film 'Mersal'; says freedom of expression is for all

The Madras High Court dismissed a petition on Friday which sought to ban Tamil superstar’s film ‘Mersal’. The court said that freedom of expression is necessary and Mersal is only a film, not real life.

A Chennai advocate had asked for the ban as he claimed that the film’s comments on health care and GST present India in a poor light. ‘Mersal’, which means stunning didn’t release in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana on Friday as scheduled before as the censor board didn’t clear the dubbed Telugu version.

Although the producers have removed the dialogue critical of GST, the censor board hasn’t given the go-ahead to the version. The Telugu version, titled "Adhirindhi", was set to release in 700 screens across the two states.

The producers have not indicated the new release date."Mersal", starring Vijay, released on Diwali in Tamil Nadu and has earned nearly 180 crores worldwide. 

However, references to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 'Mersal' have not gone down well with the BJP. The party objected to what it termed "untruths" about the central taxation regime in the film and demanded that the references be deleted.

The high court’s order comes a day after Vijay thanked his fans and supporters for defending his film. “My colleagues in the film industry, actors, directors, producers, organisations representing actors, directors, some of the renowned national leaders, media houses and my friends have given (them) a befitting reply. I thank all of them who supported Mersal,” he said.