Ahead of its theatrical premiere, the upcoming film 'Suryaa: Ansh Se Aarambh Tak' featuring actor Sunny Deol has run into courtroom contention over its depiction of the medical community. A section of medical practitioners approached the Delhi High Court seeking an injunction against the project, alleging that the teaser and trailer portray healthcare professionals negatively. Addressing the plea, a division bench of the High Court declined to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) aimed at halting the film's release, choosing not to grant any stay on its scheduled theatrical debut.
Why the Division Bench Refused to Hear the PIL
The matter came up on November 4 before a bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Nitin Vasudev Sambre and Justice Sanjay Sharma. The bench refused to hear the PIL after observing that an earlier petition centering on the identical grievance was already pending before a single judge bench of the court. The judges noted that entertaining parallel proceedings across different benches on the same subject matter was unwarranted. Consequently, the court declined to issue any restraining order on the theatrical distribution of the feature film.
Doctors Raise Concerns Over Depiction of Violence and Medical Trust
The PIL had been instituted by Dr. Nachiketa Bhatia and Dr. Dhruv Chauhan. The petitioners contended that the official trailer of the film appears to validate physical violence against doctors by presenting aggressive acts as heroic deeds. The petition argued that the cinematic narrative broadly brands the medical sector as corrupt. The petitioners maintained that despite being a work of fiction, such portrayals risk leading viewers to perceive screen events as absolute truth, thereby eroding public faith in medical personnel. They further pointed to existing real-world incidents where healthcare staff frequently face aggression and physical attacks from relatives of patients. Under such circumstances, portraying or justifying violence on screen presents serious concerns. The doctors petitioned for directions to the Central Government and the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to scrutinise the disputed sequences and dialogues, seeking their modification or outright deletion.
Preceding Petition Pending Before Single Judge Bench
This challenge was preceded by legal action from four other doctors working across different corporate hospitals, identified as Dr. Nishant Soni, Dr. Ashish Tomar, Dr. Ravi Bhatia, and Dr. Shivam Vatsal. Their joint petition sought the removal of the promotional teaser from all digital and online platforms. On November 2, a single judge bench presided over by Justice Amit Mahajan took cognisance of the matter and issued notices seeking formal responses from the Central Government, CBFC, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, and the film's production team. Arguments on that matter are scheduled to resume on November 16.
Remake Origins, Ensemble Cast, and Release Date
Directed by M. Padmakumar, 'Suryaa: Ansh Se Aarambh Tak' marks the filmmaker's directorial entry into Hindi cinema. The production serves as the official Hindi adaptation of the acclaimed 2018 Malayalam feature 'Joseph'. Alongside Sunny Deol in the central role, the ensemble cast includes Ravi Kishan, Saumya Tandon, Manish Wadhwa, Jisshu Sengupta, Pragya Jaiswal, and Tinnu Anand. The film is scheduled to arrive in cinemas on November 20, with all eyes now fixed on the upcoming court proceedings set for November 16.
