RELENTLESS RANAUT

KANGANA RANAUT’S VITRIOLIC CRUSADE FOR ‘JUSTICE’ SHIFTS AIM FROM BOLLYWOOD TO THE MAHARASHTRA GOVERNMENT. WITH SO MANY ENEMIES, SHE MAY EVEN HAVE AN ARGUMENT FOR THE OSTENTATIOUS Y+ SECURITY

- SUHANI SINGH

January 24 saw the release of the Kangana Ranaut-starring Panga. It sank without a trace. The panga that got more views came on June 16, when she put out a video in which she held “the movie mafia” responsible for the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput two days earlier. And so began Ranaut’s rise as a crusader in the ‘ justice for Sushant’ movement, influencing the narrative around the case in the news and on social media. While her ire was initially reserved for what she derisively calls ‘Bollywood’, her list of targets expanded as the investigation continued, even including two powerful groups in Maharashtra: the Mumbai Police and the Shiv Sena. In her newfound role as a socio-political commentator on a range of issues from the Ram Mandir to reservations, Ranaut has been as brazen and feisty as always. The sense of persecution remains, but there’s also a flashy braggadocio on display. “I admire her guts,” says producer Ashoke Pandit, one of the few from the industry to support the actress on September 9 when the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) demolished part of her office in Mumbai’s Bandra, alleging illegal alterations to the structure. “She takes on people and issues... You may not agree [with her], but that doesn’t mean you negate and demean her. She has the right to speak out against people who have humiliated and exploited her,” he says.