Web series on Narendra Modi comes under fire

A WEB series on Narendra Modi has come under fire for streaming without proper certification.

Modi: Journey of a Common Man is a 10-part web series directed by Umesh Shukla and it is available on Eros Now. The Delhi Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) has written to the poll panel saying that a web series is being streamed without certification from the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee.

“We have brought to the notice of the ECI that a series on PM Narendra Modi is being screened on the Eros Now platform without MCMC certification from us,” an unidentified official of the Delhi CEO’s office told The Indian Express. “We have told them that this it is not Delhi specific and is a pan-Indian content, so they may take cognizance of the matter.”

This comes just days after the Election Commission delayed the release of PM Narendra Modi, a biopic on the prime minister, until the end of polling.

In its order on April 10, the Election Commission had said: “Any biopic material in the nature of biography/hagiography sub-serving the purposes of any political entity or any individual entity connected to it, which is intended to, or which has the potential to disturb the level playing field during the elections, should not be displayed in electronic media”.

PM Narendra Modi, directed by directed by Omung Kumar, has been labelled by India's opposition parties as a propaganda movie.

However, producer Sandip Ssingh has maintained that the movie will not sway voters in favour of Modi's BJP. "If that is the case, then why can't all the parties stop all the campaigning and just make films and influence the voters?" he said in an interview with an entertainment portal.

"It's very simple. It's a producer's job. I liked one story. When I liked the story of Aligarh, nobody questioned. When I liked the story of Mary Kom, nobody questioned. When I like Sarbjit's story, nobody questioned. So then why are they grilling on this film? Why are they scared? Why aren't they confident about the work they have done for the country and their respective states? They should worry about that, not about the film," he added.