Overview

• Amey Khopkar, MNS Cinema Wing head and co-producer of Yere Yere Paisa 3, accused multiplex chains of “vindictive politics” after his film lost screenings to Saiyaara.
• Trade sources report Saiyaara’s multiplex count jumped from about 800 at release to over 2,000, squeezing Marathi titles out of prime-time slots.
• Cinema wings of both the Uddhav Thackeray-led and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena joined MNS protests, including a demonstration at a PVR in Bandra.
• Khopkar warned that continued sidelining of regional films could provoke direct action such as breaking multiplex glass panels.
• MNS and Shiv Sena leaders are demanding that the Maharashtra government enforce the law guaranteeing at least one regional-language screening per multiplex.