A court in Gujarat's Surat on Monday issued a bailable warrant against filmmaker-actor Anurag Kashyap for failing to appear before it in a case related to his alleged offensive remarks against the Brahmin community on social media last year.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate JV Chauhan issued the warrant after the 54-year-old filmmaker failed to respond to repeated summonses, including one published in a newspaper. The court scheduled the next hearing for December 24.
The proceedings stem from a complaint filed by advocate Kamlesh Raval, a legal adviser to the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad, over comments Kashyap posted on social media platform X on April 16, 2025.
Kashyap, known for directing films such as Gangs of Wasseypur and Black Friday, had made the remarks amid a controversy surrounding the Hindi film Phule, which faced objections from certain Brahmin organisations following the release of its trailer.
๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ถ๐๐๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐๐บ๐บ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐
According to Raval, the court had initially sought Kashyap's presence for verification of the allegations before initiating proceedings against him.
However, the filmmaker did not appear, prompting the court to issue summonses and subsequently direct their publication in a newspaper.
"We initially filed an application and requested his presence (in court) for verification, but he failed to appear. The trial court subsequently initiated proceedings against him. A summons was then issued, yet he did not show up," Raval said.
He added that the summons was published in a prominent newspaper's Mumbai edition, but Kashyap still failed to appear before the court.
Following his continued absence on Monday, the magistrate issued a bailable warrant to secure his presence in the proceedings.
A bailable warrant allows an accused person to obtain release upon furnishing bail in accordance with the conditions specified by the court.
๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฎ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐
In May, the court directed registration of a case against Kashyap under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) following Raval's application.
The complaint alleged that the filmmaker had posted objectionable remarks targeting the Brahmin community while responding to criticism over his comments on the film Phule.
According to the petitioner, Kashyap reacted angrily when a social media user named Aaditya objected to his post, questioning what the person had achieved by being a Brahmin.
Raval alleged that the remarks disparaged the community and could promote hostility between different religious and caste groups.
He further argued that Kashyap's position as a filmmaker and public personality increased the potential influence of his statements.
The allegations form part of the complainant's case and have not been established by a court.
๐๐ฎ๐๐ต๐๐ฎ๐ฝ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ผ๐น๐ผ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ณ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฟ๐ผ๐
The controversy erupted in April 2025 after the Akhil Bharatiya Brahmin Samaj and Vipra Sena raised objections to certain portions of Phule, a film based on social reformers Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule.
Kashyap's response to the objections sparked criticism, with several groups accusing him of making derogatory comments about the Brahmin community.
Days later, the filmmaker issued a public apology on Instagram, acknowledging that he had crossed a boundary by using abusive language while responding to a social media user in anger.
"I sincerely apologize to this community to whom I did not want to say this, but wrote it in anger while responding to someone's cheap comment," he said in his April 2025 statement.
He also apologised to his friends, family and members of the Brahmin community for his choice of words.
Despite the apology, legal proceedings continued in Surat following the complaint filed by Raval.
The court will take up the matter again on December 24.