A petition has been filed in the Patna High Court challenging the title of ‘Best Book on Cinema’ awarded to a biography of the iconic Indian musician Kishore Kumar. This legal action comes two years after the book received the prestigious accolade at the National Film Awards, sparking controversy around its recognition.
Justice Ajit Kumar heard the petition on Thursday and issued notices to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC). Both bodies have been asked to explain how the biography was chosen as the Best Book on Indian cinema. The petition was reportedly filed by Anant Prasad Sinha, a Hindi writer and literary critic. He alleges that those guidelines were violated. Based on the plea, the high court issued notices to the MIB and NFDC.
‘ Kishore Kumar : The Ultimate Biography’, authored by Anirudha Bhattacharjee and Parthiv Dhar, and published by HarperCollins, was given the Best Book on Cinema title at the 70th National Film Awards on August 16, 2024. He has sought to quash the honour given to the Kishore Kumar book which was presented at New Delhi’s Vigyan Bhawan on October 8, 2024. His petitions says that a notification published on August 7, 20204, just days before the award for the Kishore Kumar biography were announced had guidelines to choose the best book for nomination in the 70th National Film Awards.
A Patna-based petitioner has now challenged the honour in the High Court, alleging that the eligibility criteria for choosing the pick for the title was not followed, according to an Indian Express report. “At this stage, Senior Panel Counsel for the Union of India seeks three weeks’ time to file a specific counter-affidavit addressing the grievances raised by this petitioner,” the bench was quoted as saying by IE.
