Vivek Agnihotri’s film The Bengal Files landed in cinemas on Friday, September 5. It digs into the 1946 Great Calcutta Killings—a dark chapter in Indian history. The movie’s out pretty much everywhere in India, except West Bengal.
There, theatre owners, for reasons they haven’t bothered to spell out publicly, have all agreed not to show it.
Mumbai Audience Protests Sudden Show Cancellations
Turns out, it’s not just Bengal. Folks in Mumbai ran into some drama, too. Narayan Parvathy Parasuram, a regular moviegoer, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the Kanjurmarg theatre suddenly cancelled a screening of The Bengal Files.
He sounded off in a video saying the place was packed, people had tickets in hand, and then boom, show scrapped.
“This is absolutely denounceable. Shivaji Maharaj ka bhoomi hai yeh, Kolkata nahi hai yeh,” he said, not holding back.
And it wasn’t a one-off. According to him, a whole crowd, maybe fifty people, showed up for the 9 am show and got turned away. No explanations, just cancelled tickets.
THE BENGAL FILES first day first show CANCELLED at Moviemax Kanjurmarg inspite of over 50% tickets booked for an early morning show!!!#TheBengalFiles #VivekAgnihotri pic.twitter.com/62PJv3nEyO
— Narayan Parvathy Parasuram (@NarayanPar89086) September 5, 2025
Is The Bengal Files banned in West Bengal?
The state government, led by Mamata Banerjee, hasn’t issued any official ban. Instead, theatre owners themselves have decided not to screen it. Why? No one’s given a formal reason. Not a single official statement from the theatres.
What’s all the fuss about? The Bengal Files is getting called propaganda by a lot of people. But it’s also stirring things up for how it portrays Gopal Patha, a figure known for defending Hindus during the 1946 riots.
His grandson isn’t happy. In fact, he’s filed a complaint against Vivek Agnihotri, saying the film disrespects his grandfather.
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