Aparna Sen, Anjum Katyal and 26 other eminent personalities have reportedly expressed solidarity with Anurag Kashyap and strongly condemned the “culture of violence and intolerance” that forced the Gangs of Wasseypur director to quit social media after he began receiving death threats.
News agency ANI reports that Sen and others issued a press release that read,
“This is a matter that demands immediate attention. Free speech is the cornerstone of democracy, and Kashyap is one among many today who face the risk of violence for merely expressing an opinion on a public platform.”
“This culture of violence and intolerance is spreading dangerously in our society! It has to be resisted by us all. It is our earnest request to every fellow citizen, including those in positions of political and corporate leadership, to stand up against it. It is tearing apart the democratic fabric of our country by trying to silence all dialogue, debate, and dissent,” it added.
On 11 August, Anurag Kashyap announced that he was leaving the popular social media platform Twitter after received threat calls and his daughter was threatened online. He wrote in a statement, which was screenshot by other Twitter users, “When your parents start to get calls and your daughter gets online threats you know that no one wants to talk. There isn’t going to be reason or rationale. Thugs will rule and thuggery will be the new way of life. Congratulations everyone on this new India and hope you all thrive. Wish you all the happiness and success. This would be my last tweet as I leave Twitter. When I won’t be allowed to speak my mind without fear then I would rather not speak at all. Good bye.” He later filed a complaint against a troll who had threatened his daughter with the Amboli police.
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