Our Supreme Court has held that exhibition of a movie is a fundamental right covered under the free speech guarantee enshrined in Article 19(1) of the Constitution. This freedom is not absolute and can be restricted under the heads specified in Article 19(2), two of which are public order and indecency.

The Madhya Pradesh government has banned the exhibition of the movie Jodhaa Akbar, which portrays the marriage of Jodhabai, a Rajput princess, with the Mughal emperor Akbar. We must not forget that any film or novel can have some element of artistic licence. The movie in question does not purport to be a historical account. Besides, historical versions and interpretations vary considerably. It would be presumptuous for anyone to claim to be the sole repository of historical truth.

There have been cases in the past regarding depiction of historical events and personalities. In an article Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy of non-violence was condemned as pacifism born out of cowardice. A question arose before the Bombay high court regarding the action that may be taken against the writer. The high court in its judgment dated August 2, 1968 in the case of Anant Karandikar laid down certain important principles. It ruled that “merely because the criticism has been made of one whose memory is held dearly by millions of people would not be a ground for coming to the conclusion that the writer wanted to tarnish Mahatma Gandhi’s name”. The high court further observed that “it is the right and privilege of every thinker to express his judgment on historical events in a fearless manner... History is not to serve as the hand-maid of a particular school of thought”.

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