Aligarh furore: Raza Murad plays 'Censor Board' card to pacify protesters

New Delhi: Commenting on the uproar over the Manoj Bajpayee starrer 'Aligarh', which is also facing a ban in its namesake city, actor Raza Murad said on Sunday that the censor board must have given a clean chit to the movie, which should be assurance enough for those opposing the flick.

"A movie should be made keeping in mind they are not hurting any religious sentiments. I believe homosexuality is very common these days. Nowadays, gay communities are asking for their rights, asking to abolish Article 377. Every religion has homosexuals and lesbians," Murad told ANI.

The 65-year-old actor added that the issue can be address in a peaceful manner and said that those who are unhappy with Censor board's decision can go to Court.

"If you have any issues you can go to the court of law and challenge the verdict of Censor. If the court will find anything inappropriate, they will omit the scenes," he said.

Speaking about the ban, Congress leader Manish Tewari said that it was unfortunate that some 'bigots' were not able to deal with the theme of the movie and asserted that homosexuality is as legitimate an orientation as conventional sexuality.

"It's extremely sad that some bigots in Aligarh are not able to deal with this movie. The fact is that homosexuality is as legitimate an orientation as conventional sexuality is and it's high time that we as a country and as a people learn to deal with it," Tewari said.

Set in a city of Uttar Pradesh and based on true events, the film that will also starred Rajkummar Rao as Journalist and Ashish Vidyarthi, was released worldwide on 26 February 2016 to wide critical acclaim.