Modi & His Cabinet Watch 'The Sabarmati Report'; Veteran Actor Jeetendra Reveals What PM Told Him After Screening
PM Narendra Modi watched Vikrant Massey starrer 'The Sabarmati Report' with cabinet members and MPs, which he said revealed the truth behind the Sabarmati Express fire incident in 2002.
New Delhi, Dec 2 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi watched the movie 'The Sabarmati Report' on Monday along with several members of his Cabinet besides MPs from the ruling alliance at the Balyogi Auditorium in the Parliament library building.
Some members of the audience, including veteran actor Jeetendra and Raashii Khanna, who has a key role in the movie, told reporters after the meeting that Modi told them this was the first film he had watched after becoming the prime minister.
VIDEO | "When I signed this film, I had never expected that it will get such support from the PM. He took out time from such hectic schedule and also told us that this is the first film that he has watched after becoming the PM, so as Vikrant said, I think this is a high point in… pic.twitter.com/pXZ3eDuLg4
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 2, 2024
Modi was joined by Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari and Jitan Ram Manjhi, a BJP ally, among others. The film claims to reveal the truth behind the fire incident in Sabarmati Express at Godhra on February 27, 2002, killing 59 devotees returning from Ayodhya after participating in a religious ceremony.
Vikrant Massey, who played the lead protagonist, said it was a different experience watching the movie with Modi that cannot be expressed in words. He expressed his delight and appealed to the people to watch the film. This experience was the highest point in his career, he added.
VIDEO | "It was an incredible experience to watch this film with the honourable PM and Cabinet ministers. Maybe I can never express in words, but I am still nervous, rather happiness..." says 'The Sabarmati Report' actor Vikrant Massey after watching the film with PM at the… pic.twitter.com/IgkRlJXe4K
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 2, 2024
In a post on X after watching the film, Modi commended the makers of the film for their effort.
Joined fellow NDA MPs at a screening of 'The Sabarmati Report.'
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 2, 2024
I commend the makers of the film for their effort. pic.twitter.com/uKGLpGFDMA
Jeetendra told reporters that this was the first time he had watched a film with the prime minister due to his daughter Ekta Kapoor, one of its producers.
"He (Modi) told me that it was the first movie he has seen after becoming prime minister," one of the Hindi film industry's leading actors of his times said. Actor Raashii Khanna also made a similar comment and expressed delight at the experience.
VIDEO | "I told the honourable PM that I have spent 50 years in the film line, and this is the first time that because of my daughter, I am watching a film with the honourable PM. He replied that he too was watching a film for the first time since he became PM," says veteran… pic.twitter.com/sNHQRuKHmf
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 2, 2024
The ruling BJP has actively promoted the movie, with many of its state governments making it tax-free.
Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat at the time of the incident, which was followed by communal riots, and the state police had blamed a Muslim mob for setting some of the train coaches on fire. Many accused chargesheeted by the police were later convicted in courts.
The incident had triggered a major political row as an enquiry commission constituted by the then railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, a Congress ally, had claimed that the fire was an accident.
The Gujarat High Court had, however, quashed its findings and termed the commission unconstitutional.
(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)