Indian Govt should hang its head in shame: BBC filmmaker

Washington, March 11, 2015: British-based filmmaker Leslee Udwin says the Indian government should hang its head in shame for banning her documentary on the December 16, 2012 fatal assault of a 23-year-old Delhi woman. India banned the BBC documentary - "India's Daughter" - on the atrocity of the woman who has come to be known as Nirbhaya or the Fearless, following an uproar over convicted assaulter Mukesh Singh's comments blaming the victim. "The home minister (Rajnath Singh) blamed the protesters when there were protests on the Gandhian level, peaceful and right and good," Udwin told the Los Angeles Times. "The irony is it only became violent when the police got involved." "The government should hang its head in shame" for the ban, she was quoted as saying in an interview on Monday before the US premiere of her film at event in downtown Manhattan ahead of an airing on PBS later this year. Udwin, has also denied accusations in the Indian media that Mukesh Singh was either paid for his time or interviewed without his consent. A title card at the start of the film refutes the latter claim. Actresses Meryl Streep, Freida Pinto, Dakota Fanning and singer Chris Martin were among those at the premiere, an event organized by women's-rights groups Vital Voices and Plan International at Manhattan's Baruch College. The celebrities became involved because of the initial interest of Alan Rickman, who is a friend of Udwin's and began spreading the word among other entertainers, the Times said.