MUMBAI: While fans of Shah Rukh Khan in Japan were in for a real treat last month, when his 2007 hit musical romcom ‘Om Shanti Om’ hit the screens in their country… back home, veteran actor Manoj Kumar was left displeased, again.
Talking to the press, a very upset Manoj Kumar said, “The film was released in Japan without deleting those scenes. I had forgiven them twice but not this time. They have disrespected me.”
The veteran actor was referring to scenes from ‘Om Shanti Om’ which apparently represented and offended him. Reportedly, Manoj Kumar’s body double has been used in the SRK-Deepika Padukone starrer, and shows the senior actor in a bad taste, according to his claim.
In 2008, Kumar had said, “Are the Mumbai police so stupid that they can’t recognise Manoj Kumar and lathicharge him in the ’70s when he was a star?”
He had candidly called Shah Rukh Khan “communal”. Later, in a press conference, SRK and director Farah Khan apologized to the senior star and offered to cut the offensives scenes.
Before the ‘Om Shanti Om’s television premiere, Manoj Kumar filed for a stay on the television release, at a Mumbai Court. On 8 August 2008, he won permanent injunction on the scenes in ‘Om Shanti Om’ that lampooned him. The court ordered the producers and Sony Entertainment Television, to edit the Manoj Kumar look-alike scenes before showing the film on any media—TV, DVD or Internet—without the scene being deleted.
However, it looks like the offending scenes were not removed after all, in the Japanese release titled ‘Koi Suru Rinne Om Shanti Om’.
Kumar plans to file a law suit April 2, 2013 against Shah Rukh Khan and Eros International and seek damages to the tune of Rs 100 crore for not adhering to the Court’s order in his favour.
Confirms the actor, “They face contempt of court as in 2008 the court had asked them to forever and from all prints and broadcast material, delete those scenes! I would file civil and criminal proceedings against the producers tomorrow for seeking damages to the tune of Rs 100 crore for showing ‘Om Shanti Om’ in Japan without removing objectionable scenes as ordered by Mumbai civil court in 2008.”
