Why's Kollywood silent on the Viswaroopam controversy?

The Tamil and Telugu versions of "Vishwaroopam", which deals with the adversities of war, were scheduled to release on January 25, 2013, but the Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday imposed curbs on it following protests from Muslim groups.

Kamal Haasan's Viswaroopam which was set for release on January 25, with more than 25, 000 tickets sold for the opening weekend in Tamil Nadu, got stalled on January 24 by the government after several Muslim groups petitioned it seeking a ban. A hurt and upsetKamal Haasan called this 'cultural terrorism' and said his film was not against his 'Muslim brothers' . He said, "I have been ruthlessly used as a vehicle by small groups who seek political profile. Icon bashing is a great way to be noticed when you are not one yourself. It is happening again and again."

In the last few days, Rajinikanth, Ajith, Bharathiraja, Sarath Kumar, Radhikaa and Parthepan, have been some people from the Tamil film industry who have come out and voiced their support for Kamal Haasan and urged the government to resolve the issue peacefully and amicably. However, many from Kollywood have chosen to maintain a stoic silence on this issue.

Director Bharathiraja's statement has been the only strong one so far condemning the silence."I don't understand why people who call themselves as artists and creators are maintaining silence regarding Kamal Haasan's trouble releasing Vishwaroopam. Do we need to support only a few in the industry? Are they alone fit to be called artists? Despite there being so many bodies in the film industry, many are keeping mum on this issue, probably because the industry bodies themselves stand split or for personal reasons. What if we too face a similar problem tomorrow as Kamal Haasan is facing today? Where will we go to get relief? We don't have unity. If a few persons are seeking a ban on a film that has been certified by a body that has been set up by the central government, comprising a government officer and socially conscious members of the society — including a Muslim member — I can't understand where we should go to get justice."

But Tamizh Padam director, C S Amudhan, says , "I don't think the industry is silent; many people have supported Kamal Haasan. In fact, I have expressed my support to him." A leading producer, on condition of anonymity, adds, "Unlike other film industries, politics and cinema is very strongly intertwined here. Actors have political aspirations and politicians are producers in Kollywood. For instance, Michael Rayappan is a producer and so is Anbazhagan among others. While there's nothing against politicians being producers, taking a stand on such issues may have repercussions for people in K-Town. This is why many have chosen to let the law take its course and not commented on it."

Another producer, off the record, tells TOI, "There are so many English and Hindi films based onAfghanistan that have been released but there have been no issues with them. In fact, people who have seen the film in Kerala told me that it's not anti-Muslim at all."

PMK leader Dr Ramadoss has been one politician who has gone on record to bat for Kamal Haasan and condemned what has happened. In a statement, he said that Kamal could never hurt sentiments of Muslims and Hindus and that the actor was involved in many goodwill measures to promote Hindu-Muslim unity. Ex CM M. Karunanidhi also said that an 'amicable resolution' should be arrived at to this controversy.

Most Kollywood people TOI contacted preferred not to comment. Says a filmmaker, on condition of anonymity, "The bottomline is if you want to be in the Tamil film industry, you need to take a neutral stand or stand united with the government. Kamal Haasan had a genuine intention of seeking approval when he showed his film to the Muslin groups who had a problem with it. Unfortunately, it's backfired."