Shekhar Kapur recalls receiving an award for ‘Bandit Queen’ in handcuffs

Renowned filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, who last helmed the critically and commercially successful British romantic comedy What’s Love Got to Do with It? (2022), recently took a trip down memory lane and remembered the time when he went onto the stage to receive an award in handcuffs.

Yes, the veteran filmmaker recently shared a photo from an award ceremony where he can be seen standing on the stage in handcuffs. The photograph is from the 1994 Filmfare Awards where he received an award for his controversial Hindi film Bandit Queen (1994).

Sharing the picture, Kapur wrote on Twitter, “Was asked by Filmfare not to make any political or controversial statements for my award for Bandit Queen. The ceremony was being televised on National TV. And the film was banned anyway. I kept my promise. Didn’t say a word, but that’s how I went on stage... handcuffed.”

Earlier, Kapur shared another picture on Instagram. He is seen receiving the award from filmmaker Subhash Ghai in the old photograph. Kapur wrote in the caption, “Zoom into my wrists carefully. you’ll see them handcuffed. It was what I called the #BanditQueen effect. Filmfare decided to give me an award for my film Bandit Queen. But because it was banned and because there was so much controversy around the film, they made me promise I would not make any political or controversial statements .. as the awards ceremony was going out live on National TV. I kept my promise .. and didn’t say a word .. I took the award and raised my hands up in the air and the audience saw that I was handcuffed! The audience roared in approval.”

For those not in the know, Bandit Queen was a biographical drama based on the life of dacoit-turned-politician Phoolan Devi. Seasoned actress Seema Biswas played the titular role in the film.

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