Behzti

Behzti (in Punjabi, Dishonour) is a play written by the British Sikh playwright Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti. The play sparked controversy in the United Kingdom in December 2004. A controversial scene set in a Gurdwara (Sikh temple) included scenes of rape, physical abuse and murder. Some members of the Sikh community found the play deeply offensive to their faith. On the opening night, 18 December 2004, at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre (The Rep), in Birmingham, England, a protest organised by local Sikh leaders faced violence that erupted among the protesters. Performances of the play at the Rep were cancelled two days later.

The opening night performance on 18 December 2004 was cancelled after violence erupted among protesters gathered around the theatre. Three people were arrested for public order offences. Three police officers were injured. The Sikh protest organizers stated that they did not support the violence of a minority of protesters, and stated they would be happy to see minor changes in the script so that the play was not set in a Sikh temple.

Sewa Singh Mandla, organiser of the protest and chairman of the Council of Sikh Gurdwaras in Birmingham, stated:

In a Sikh temple, sexual abuse does not take place, kissing and dancing don't take place, rape doesn't take place, homosexual activity doesn't take place, murders do not take place.

On 20 December 2004, after an emergency meeting of the theatre management, and discussions involving the local Sikh community, West Midlands Police and the Commission for Racial Equality, The Rep decided to cancel the play.

Supporters of the play said the cancellation was an affront to freedom of speech. More than 700 arts figures, including Prunella Scales, Tariq Ali, Terry Jones, Andrew Motion, Jude Kelly, Richard Eyre, Ayub Khan-Din, Willy Russell, Jonathan Coe, Sheila Hancock, Timothy West, and Samuel West signed a letter in support of the playwright. The letter read, in part:

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