The Nepal Weekly 
June 20, 2023
Kathmandu has banned screening of Hindi movies in all the cinema halls across the capital city. Since morning Kathmandu Metropolitan City deployed its police force in all 17 halls across the metropolis to ensure that all Hindi movies including the controversial ‘Adipurush’ are barred from screening.
Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah in a statement objected to the film Adipurush’s use of a line that claimed that ‘Janaki is a daughter of India’. Shah’s tweet sent Nepali social media into a frenzy, with many users welcoming the mayor’s decision and others denouncing it.
Shah said that “it is the responsibility of the local government to protect the national interest and allowing the screening of the film without removing the objectionable dialogue could do irreparable damage to the country’s nationality and cultural identity.”
Raju Pandey, chief of Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) Police said that as per the instructions given by Mayor Balendra Shah, the KMC police had inspected the cinema halls within the city on Sunday to ensure that screening of Hindi movies are halted from Monday. “We got positive response during the inspection on Sunday and we are now monitoring all the cinema halls from Monday morning,” he said.
“While monitoring QFX Hall at Civil Mahal in Kathmandu, they said they will show Nepali and English movies instead of Hindi ones.” “We will not allow screening of Hindi movies until the KMC authority gives permission,” he added.
“No one is greater than the nation, so all the parties must support the move when our national interest and cultural identity is in question,” remarked Sunil K.C., Lawmaker of Bagmati Province and youth leader of Rastriya Prajatantra Party.
A security guard at Q’s Cinema situated at the Rising Mall in Kamaladi Kathmandu said, they screened Adipurush once on Friday evening and then they stopped screening of the movie. “Now we are screening Nepali film Neer Phool from Monday,” he informed.
