Dream Warrior Pictures, the makers of Sultan, have condemned the efforts of multiple parties to stifle the creative freedom of filmmakers. Sultan is an upcoming film starring Karthi and is directed by Bakkiyaraj Kannan.

The statement from Dream Warrior Pictures came on Thursday after a group allegedly protested near the Dindigul fort on Tuesday, where the filming of the movie was underway. The protesters claimed that the film was about Tipu Sultan (who had been crowned King of Dindigul in 1788) and demanded that the shooting of the movie not be held at the fort.

Slamming the protesters, the production house said that of late, incidents of private individuals and some groups attacking movies for personal gain and publicity are on the rise. “There is a censor board to ensure what is not to be shown in a movie. Apart from this, the right to decide what to portray in a movie lies with its creators. This is the freedom and protection provided to us by our country’s law. Hence, we strongly condemn any efforts made by any organisation or individual to stifle the freedom of creators,” read the statement.

Explaining that Sultan is not a movie based on history or Tipu Sultan, Dream Warrior Pictures said, “We also condemn activities that identify the lives of our historical and national leaders on the basis of caste and religion thereby bringing disrepute to their lives and our history.”

The movie stars Karthi as the male lead and Rashmika Mandanna as the female lead. Directed by Bakkiyaraj Kannan who made Remo, the movie is produced by SR Prabhu under the banner of Dream Warrior Pictures. Sathyan Sooryan is handling the camerawork for the movie while the music has been composed by Vivek and Mervin. The shooting for the movie started in March and it is touted to be an action-comedy flick.