Veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty has spoken out for the first time on the controversy surrounding Vivek Agnihotri’s upcoming film The Bengal Files. In an interview, the star argued that attempts to portray Bengal’s difficult past are often unfairly dismissed as political agendas.
“The moment you show reality, it becomes politically motivated,” Mithun said. He pointed to the horrors of the Noakhali genocide and the Great Calcutta killings, historical tragedies he admitted occurred before his birth but remain crucial to India’s memory. “Nobody wants to know how and why it happened. Vivek Agnihotri is saying, ‘Please know the truth.’ A genocide took place in which around 40,000 Hindus were killed. The same with the Great Calcutta killings. People revolt against it, but this is the truth.”
The backlash intensified when actress-producer Pallavi Joshi, who co-produced the film and stars in it, alleged that the West Bengal government blocked both the trailer launch and a planned special screening in Kolkata. According to her, the makers wanted to unveil the trailer on August 16 — the 79th anniversary of Direct Action Day, a dark moment in Bengal’s history. “We knew we’d face resistance, but not that we wouldn’t be able to show the trailer at all,” she said.
Directed by Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri, The Bengal Files features Mithun Chakraborty, Darshan Kumar, and Pallavi Joshi in leading roles. It is scheduled for worldwide theatrical release on September 5, 2025.
For Mithun, the issue is simple: history must be confronted honestly, even if it makes people uncomfortable. His defense of The Bengal Files frames the film not just as a cinematic project, but as an effort to spark dialogue about Bengal’s troubled past and its political sensitivities today.
