India police book Bollywood stars for comedy 'roast'

Mumbai police said Friday they have registered a case against a string of Bollywood celebrities, alleging obscenity in the staging of a comedy "roast" television show which sparked a furore over freedom of expression.
A-list actress Deepika Padukone and filmmaker Karan Johar are among those named in the case over the show AIB Knockout, which was pulled from YouTube after causing uproar in India for its profanities and sexual references.
Police will now investigate the group -- as part of the "first information report" or FIR filed -- including for criminal conspiracy, obscene acts and songs, and words or gestures intended to insult a woman's modesty.
"The FIR is registered against 14 accused at Tardeo police station," Deputy Commissioner of Police Dhananjay Kulkarni, spokesman for the Mumbai force, told AFP, listing the various organisers and participants accused.
AIB Knockout, hosted by Johar in December, comically insulted several Bollywood actors in front of a large audience strewn with celebrities such as Padukone, in a format common in Western countries but rarely seen in India.
The show included Johar and Bollywood actors Arjun Kapoor and Ranveer Singh -- both also booked by the police -- singing a reworking of a song with the Hindi word for penis substituting some lyrics.
A video attracted more than eight million hits in just a few days when it was uploaded on YouTube late last month, but it sparked a fierce backlash.
Religious groups urged police to file charges against the producers, and the right-wing government of Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital, ordered an investigation.
Earlier this month, the producers said they were pulling the video for "pragmatic" reasons, but added that India needed to confront the fact that freedom of expression was being curtailed.
The "roast" sparked a storm on social media, with a member of India's powerful censor board slamming it on Twitter as "a porn show on stage".
But hundreds of supporters including Bollywood actors and producers also hit back, urging the right to freedom of speech.
India's hardline groups often urge authorities to act against authors and artists whose works they consider insulting to their religion or against society's perceived morals.
Acclaimed Tamil-language author Perumal Murugan announced last month he was quitting writing altogether following protests by right-wing Hindu and caste groups over one of his books.
British author Salman Rushdie, whose novel "The Satanic Verses" is seen as blasphemous by some Muslims, is still banned in India.