Vivek Agnihot's The Bengal Files is all set to release on September 5, 2025. The film has been facing a lot of controversy, and on Thursday, the producer of the film, Pallavi Joshi, wrote an open letter to the President of India, Droupadi Murmu. In her letter, she revealed that the theatre owners of West Bengal have refused to screen their film.
Joshi took to Instagram to share the letter and wrote, "URGENT APPEAL Your Excellency, @presidentofindia, As Producer of #TheBengalFiles, I am pained that multiplex chains in Bengal have refused the film’s release under political pressure and threats by the ruling party. I plead for your intervention to uphold my constitutional rights and ensure its release in Bengal. Cc: @narendramodi @hmoindia @mib_india @ashwini.vaishnaw (sic)."
In the letter, Joshi wrote, "Respected Madam President, With a heavy heart, I reach out to you, not for favours, but for protection. The Bengal Files, the final part of the Files Trilogy, releases on 5th September. It tells the long-suppressed truth of the Hindu genocide of Direct Action Day, the horrors of Noakhali, and the trauma of Partition. But in West Bengal, truth is under siege. Years before completion, the Chief Minister mocked the film. Since then, baseless FIRS have been filed, our trailer was blocked by police, and even newspapers avoid carrying ads. My family is threatened every day by political party workers. Now theatre owners have told us they are being intimidated, threatened and are refusing to screen it, fearing violence by ruling party workers. There is no official ban, yet an unofficial ban silences the film before people can see it (sic)."
The letter further read, "Legendary actor, Padma Bhushan Victor Banerjee, along with many Bengali organisations in India and abroad, have already petitioned you. Their support proves that truth still has allies. The Bengal Files is the cry of Maa Bharati, scarred yet unbroken, a story of survival and hope. As a woman who rose from the margins to the highest constitutional office, only you can truly understand what it means to endure such pain and turn it into purpose. This is cinema of truth. But truth also needs protection. Madam President, I seek not a favour for a film but space for art, for truth, for Maa Bharati's soul to speak without fear. You are my final hope. Please protect our constitutional right and let The Bengal Files be shown in West Bengal peacefully (sic)."
The Bengal Files Cast
Apart from Pallavi Joshi, the movie also stars Mithun Chakraborty, Darshan Kumar, Simrat Kaur, Anupam Kher, Saswata Chatterjee, Namashi Chakraborty, Rajesh Khera, Puneet Issar, Priyanshu Chatterjee, Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Sourav Das, and Mohan Kapur.
The Bengal Files Trailer Launch Controversy
The trailer launch event of the film was organised in Kolkata a couple of weeks ago. But the screening of the trailer was abruptly halted by Kolkata Police.
