Kirti Kulhari with director Madhur Bhandarkar during the promotion of “Indu Sarkar,” in New Delhi, July 25. (Press Trust of India)

Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar is happy and relieved after the Supreme Court cleared the decks for the release of his movie “Indu Sarkar,” July 27.

The apex court dismissed the plea of a woman, who claimed to be the biological daughter of late Sanjay Gandhi, for a stay on the screening of the film, which is set against the backdrop of the Emergency.

The film portrays characters inspired by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her son Sanjay Gandhi.

“I have been through hell in the last few days but I am happy and relieved today. It is a great judgement, I am so happy that the Honorable Supreme Court has held the artistic rights of a filmmaker,” Bhandarkar told PTI.

“I spoke to my lawyer, I have not gone through the entire judgement but whatever I know about it, I feel it’s one of the best judgements. It has set a different precedence for every filmmaker in the future,” he says.

The Supreme Court’s three-judge bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra said that the film is an “artistic expression” within the parameters of law and there was no justification to stall its scheduled release tomorrow.

“For this film, I have been fighting everywhere – from political parties to the censor board and then in courts. I am a filmmaker who wants to narrate good stories to the audience,” Bhandarkar said.

The director said he also brought to the court’s notice that he had carried out the cuts as suggested by Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). The censor board has granted a ‘U/A’ certificate to the film.

The film stars Kirti Kulhari, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Anupam Kher, Tota Roy Chowdhury and Supriya Vinod in lead roles.