Kanoon Ke Haath Mein Khiladi 
By Molly, May 8, 2007 - 02:12 IST
At no other time in the history of the Indian film industry have so many big names and celebrities found lurking in the dark and dingy corner of police station and various courts of law. Yes, there were glorious times when a brilliant actor like Balraj Sahni went to jail and was taken to film shooting in a police van and brought to his cell in jail after the day's shoot was over. But that was Balraj Sahni, a real-life hero gone to jail because of his activity as one of the hundreds and thousands of men and women who were pushed into jail because they were declare dangerous elements working against the power of the British Government. They were kept in jail for days because they were considered revolutionaries who were fighting for the freedom of mother India. There were writers and poets like Kaifi Azmi, Majrooh Sultanpuri and Khwaja Ahmed Abbas who kept walking in and out of jail because they wrote things that were considered inflammatory or made public speeches which the delicate and fragile hearts of the mighty powers of Her Majesty power could not take because they were greater threats then fighting battle in the streets. There was only one case of an actor called Raaj Kumar who had to go to jail because of allegedly assaulting a public servant on duty.
But look at what is happening in today's times. We have the leading case of Sanjay Dutt, the only son of two of the most patriotic Indians, Sunil Dutt and Nargis Dutt, spending thirteen years in jail, anda cells and hospitals all because of his alleged crime of working out some of the most heinous acts against the interest of the country. He was one of the leading accused charged under TADA till some weeks ago when he was absolved against all the crimes that came under TADA and was only framed of the charged coming under the Possession of arms act, case which now pending against him. He has moved every god in the country for mercy. His family, friends and fans have prayed for him because they feel he has already suffered for more than thirteen years and lived under all kinds of tension all the time which they feel as good as big punish for whatever crime he is supposed to have committed.
Then there is Salman Khan, Sanjay's contemporary and colleague who is loved by the audience but wanted and hunted by the law not in one but two major criminal cases. He is being tried for the poaching case, a crime he is supposed to have committed when he killed several Chinkara, an animal which comes under the endangered species which is considered a major crime by the law of the land. The case has been dragging on for years and the greatest punishment is being served by his producers who have to stop shooting their films with him whenever the courts summon him and he has to be present only to be given another date, to go back again to find another date and this has been going on and on. The case in which he is charged for negligent driving and killing one and injuring several other is also hanging around him like the sharp sword of Damocles.
There is Fardeen Khan, the son of Feroz Khan who is facing charges for the possession of a drug called cocaine. He like Sanjay has spent time in jail but he has not been in for as long as Sanjay has. But the case against him is going on and taking new twists and turns and there seems to be no end to it. Fardeen is much in demand hero, who is now married to Natasha daughter of the one time popular actress, Mumtaz, but the courts want him and the law is against him. His trial is still on and his future depends on it.
And God alone knows whatever happened to the Puru Raaj Kumar case. Puru the son of the legendry actor Raaj Kumar was also arrested and charged for rash and negligent driving killing three men on the spot. The case is still pending in the court and nothing seems to be happening or making any progress while Puru is busy pursuing his career without any worry. I wonder how he and his conscience can.
There was the case of Shayan Munshi a television actor who was involved in the infamous Jessica Lall murder case. But he now seems to be out of it all.
There is the case pending against the friend of the late model Nafisa Joseph. Her parents are trying their best to see that justice is done but they are still waiting like so many thousands have got into the habit of waiting for justice to be done.
There are any number of producers who are involved in cases of fraud and cheating. The latest is the case of an actress who was the number one actress in the eighties and nineties and her husband who is a leading and ambitious producer of Hindi films. There is case of Mehul Kumar who has made more than forty big films. Best known for his film, Krantiveer, he has been dragged to court by Mr. Jayantilal Gada of Popular Entertainment Network (PEN) who has filed major charges of big defrauded by Mehul for crores and for issuing fake cheques which have resulted in a ban on his producing film and putting his multiplex in Jamnagar in Gujarat in all kind of trouble from which it seems he will find it difficult to come out.
There are cases of defamation filed by some of the very famous stars against magazines and journalists who have indulged in all kind of slander and slime in the name of investigated journalism. And Mumbai is not the only centre where all these shocking things are happening. There are many more cases in the South where some leading stars and filmmakers are involved in crimes of abetting suicides and even alleged murders. Yeh sab kya ho raha hain ? Don't the people who get themselves involved in any kind of crime realise that the hands of the law are very long and strong? Haven't they heard of the phrase in Hindi which says Kanoon ke haath mein khelna bahot khatarnak hota hain?
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"I feel that I’m getting married a second time" – Fardeen Khan
