Mumbai: The National Film Awards Cell, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, has refused to award the National Film Award for Best Choreography to Sheikh Jani Basha, popularly known as Jani Master. The decision comes after ‘Stree 2’ choreographer ‘Aai Nahi’ was found guilty in a case of raping a minor. The cell made the announcement a day after Jani was granted four-day interim bail for the National Awards ceremony. Jani Master won the National Award for Best Choreography for the song ‘Megham Karukkatha’ from ‘Thiruchitrambalam’. The award was shared with the other choreographer of the track, Satish Krishnan. However, on Friday, the National Film Awards Cell of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a statement saying that the award has been suspended.
The statement said, “In view of the gravity of the allegation and the subjudice nature of the matter, the competent authority has decided to suspend the National Film Award for Best Choreography for the year 2022 to Shri Sheikh Jani Basha for the film Thiruchitramblam till further orders.” In addition, the choreographer’s invitation to attend the prestigious National Film Awards was also rescinded. The event will take place on October 8 at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.
For those who don’t know, the choreographer was arrested on September 19. The arrest was made by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Cyberabad police in Goa. Sheikh Jani Basha (Jani Master) was then produced in court. Subsequently, on Friday, September 20, he was sent to 14-day judicial custody by the Upparpally court in Hyderabad. Jani was sent to Chanchalguda Central Jail in Hyderabad. Earlier, on September 18, Narsingi police in Cyberabad had booked Jani Master under sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The move came after a complaint was filed by a 21-year-old woman, accusing the choreographer of assaulting her multiple times. In the complaint, the woman, who worked with Jani as a junior choreographer, said that he abused her for six years.
Following the complaint, Jani Master was booked under several sections. These include sections- 376 (2) (punishment for sexual assault) and 506 (criminal intimidation). Besides, Jani faces charges under section 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The police took action after finding that Jani allegedly started abusing the victim when she was just 16 years old, a minor. The Telugu choreographer has worked with several southern cinema stars including Ram Charan and Allu Arjun. Jani was asked to stay away from his duties as a member of the Jana Sena Party following the case. This party is led by Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and actor Pawan Kalyan.
