Crowds have packed theaters in India to see a re-release of Shekhar Kapur’s Bandit Queen, starring Seema Biswas as Phoolan Devi, the woman described as a female Robin Hood, who emerged from prison to become a prominent member of the Indian Parliament — only to lose her life to an assasin’s bullet last week. In the mid-90s, the film had become as controversial as its subject, with Indian censors demanding that numerous scenes be cut. It has not been screened in India, since 1996, when, following numerous legal appeals, it was released uncut. Reporting on the new release, Tuesday’s Times of India commented that “Phoolan’s death [has given] the film a new lease on life. Like they say, strange are the ways of the real and reel world.”
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