Court grants anticipatory bail to director, producer of controversial webseries, Godman

The Principal Sessions Court today granted anticipatory bail to the director and producer of the controversial web series Godman, which was to release on the OTT platform Zee5.

I Additional Sessions Judge of the Principal Sessions Court, Justice M N Senthil Kumar, who heard the plea of director Babu Yogeswaran and Producer Elango Raghupathy, granted them anticipatory bail on the condition that the petitioners execute a bond for a sum of Rs 10,000 each with two sureties each for a like sum. The court also laid down certain other conditions for granting them anticipatory bail.

What the controversy is all about:

Produced by Feathers Entertainment, the webseries Godman, which features actors Jayaprakash, Daniel Balaji, Sonia Aggarwal in the lead, was to release on June 12 on the OTT platform Zee5.

However, trouble arose when the team chose to release a one-minute trailer on May 25 on Zee5’s official website and social media channels. Brahmin organisations found the trailer objectionable and claimed that the show was targetting the Hindu religion.

On May 30, the president of the World Brahmin Organisation, Subramaniya Iyer filed a complaint under sections 153, 153(a), 153A(1)(b), 295A, 504.505(1)(b), 505(2) of the IPC with Chennai’s cybercrime department against both producer Elango Ragupathy and director Babu Yogeswaran.

The city police registered an FIR against director Babu Yogeswaran and Producer Elango Raghupathy under charges of promoting enmity between different groups. The producer and director were booked under sections 63/20 u/s 153, 153 (A), 295A,504, 505 1(B) and 505(2) of the IPC.

Meanwhile, Zee5, on June 1, announced a temporary suspension of the show.

The makers of the web series, however, say that this web-series does not target any religion, faith or community. They claim the series is about a fake Godman and his anti-social activities. The makers, in a statement released recently, had sought the support and solidarity of the public to encourage Zee5 to release the web series.

In the statement that was shared on social media by Sonia Aggarwal, one of the actresses of the web series, the makers had said that they had begun a signatory petition which they planned to take to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Prime Minister’s office and the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister.