Indian film's sex scenes draw crowds, protests, lawsuit
The Indian film Ek Chhoti Si Love Story (A Short Love Story) opened on Friday to sellout crowds and protests at some theaters, both due to two brief sex scenes with mild nudity. The film's star is seeking a court order to get those scenes deleted. "The row erupted after Manisha Koirala, the lead actress who plays a woman subject to a 15-year-old youth's infatuation, asked a court to order the removal of explicit scenes shot involving her character but with a substitute actress. . . . [Director Shashilal] Nair maintains that all the film stars, including Koirala, were told about the film's story before the shooting began. He says the film was seen and approved by Koirala twice." Indian Express critic Shubhra Gupta dismissed both the film and the controversy: "Without them (the scenes) the film would have no legs. There is more vulgarity in the song-and-dance sequences our movies are littered with. Koirala herself has featured in scores of such numbers uncomplainingly in the past."
