Women commission sends notice to ‘Ek Thi Daayan’ makers

National Commission of Women has sent notice to Ekta Kapoor and Vishal Bhardwaj, the co-producers of Ek Thi Daayan, to appear before them on April 9 in New Delhi for showing women in regressive role in their upcoming film.

“We have issued notice of Ekta Kapoor after the complaint filed by a woman Ipsita roy who has taken offense with the way witches are allegedly shown in flick. Ekta is asked to be present before the commission on April 9,” Chairperson Mamta Sharma of women commission said to a Daily.

Self-proclaimed witch and author Ipsita Roy Chakraverti has lodged a complaint against Ekta Kapoor and Ek Thi Daayan team with President Pranab Mukherjee and Women’s Commission chief Mamta Sharma.

“I met the President at 7.15 pm at Rashtrapati Bhawan on Tuesday with my petition. I explained to him why such a film should not be released in India. I reasoned that the portrayal of witches in the film supports the age-old prejudice of burning women after branding them as witches. I am totally in the know of the contents of the film. The company had forwarded a detailed brief and I had had a chat with the director too,” Ipsita Roy Chakraverti told TOI.
“How can somebody say that I am degrading women? My film is a work of art. I need to consult my legal team,” Ekta Kapoor said.

“Look around you. It is weird, it is spooky but does not scare you. Witches’ dens are not spooky always as they are made out to be… Like witches are not always found to be scary. There are other world thrills at a witch’s den,” Kapoor told PTI on Sunday.

“‘Ek Thi Daayan’ is a story you will enjoy. It is not derived from any real life incident. So don’t be so serious while watching it,” she said.

Ek Thi Daayan is a romantic thriller based on Witchcraft starring Emraan Hashmi, Konkona Sen Sharma, Kalki Koechlin and Huma Qureshi. The film is directed by Kannan Iyer and will be released on 18th April.

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