Following the trouble surrounding Deepa Mehta's Water, a second production filmed in India - Kamal Haasan's Hey Ram, about Mahatma Gandhi's assassination - is stirring controversy in different parts of the country.

Several Indian political organisations are angry about what they describe as an incorrect portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi in the film. Incidents of violence, including the tearing down of film posters and damage to cinemas screening the period drama, have been reported from cities including Calcutta, Varanasi, Indore, Bhopal and Jaipur.

Traditionally, films that have caused controversy in India such as Shekhar Kapur's Bandit Queen and Mehta's Fire, have benefited from the publicity which has resulted in strong box office returns. However, Hey Ram has so far performed poorly on its Indian release.