4 times when celebrities’ litfest sessions were canceled in India

4 times when celebrities’ litfest sessions were canceled in India

Filmmaker Onir Dhar’s session on LGBTQ issues at the Bhopal Lit Fest was canceled recently.

This came after a group reportedly threatened to stage a protest, and government sources informed the organizers his presence could lead to security-related issues. Following this, Dhar expressed his shock and sadness on Twitter.

Here are four other instances when litfest sessions of notable personalities were canceled in India.

Indian-born British-American Salman Rushdie was to speak at 2012’s Jaipur Literature Festival regarding his Booker Prize-winning Midnight’s Children (1981).

However, the session was canceled after Rushdie had reportedly received intelligence reports that Mumbai-based underworld assassins could target him.

Known for his strong opinions, Rushdie has been targeted by a certain section for long. In 2022, he was stabbed at an event in New York.

Exiled Bangladeshi writer-activist Taslima Nasreen is known for her fiery opinions, especially against Islam.

She had a session at JLF 2017, following which several Muslim groups protested outside the venue, Diggi Palace. As per reports, Nasreen has been blacklisted from the JLF since then.

The author has been in exile for nearly 30 years now and currently resides in New Delhi.

American writer Noam Chomsky was to address a session with journalist Vijay Prashad on the former’s book Internationalism or Extinction at the 2020 Mumbai LitFest.

They planned to speak about how conglomerates like Tata Group and governments of parties like the BJP were “hastening humanity towards a deeper crisis.”

However, Tata Group was the main sponsor, and organizers canceled their session, citing “integrity issues.”

In early 2018, the nation erupted with Karni Sena’s rampage around the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat.

Prasoon Joshi, the head of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), which cleared its screening, decided to stay away from the 2018 JLF after he received threats from the Rajput group.

The noted lyricist was assured of security, yet he chose to cancel his session.