Incensed by a young man’s tardiness in standing up for the national anthem at a cinema hall, actor Puneet Issar’s wife lost her poise and thwacked him hard on the head and launched into a volley of abuse. Her tirade, eyewitnesses report, ran for almost as long as the national anthem did, leading to a furore in the hall.

Our source reports that the young couple then moved to another part of the theatre to watch the film in peace. The Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, actually advocates punishment for “Whoever intentionally prevents the singing of the Indian National Anthem or causes disturbances to any assembly engaged in such singing.”

The incident happened at a late night showing of Anand Gandhi’s Ship of Theseus at Cinemax, Andheri, on Wednesday. The young man who is an Australian national of Indian origin was visiting Mumbai for a few days and seemingly unaware of our Goebbelsian enthusiasm for playing the national anthem at cinemas. Rather, he was engaged in a pursuit more familiar to the cinema-frequenting young across the world: canoodling with his girlfriend.Maharashtra is the only state in India where it is compulsory to play the national anthem in cinema halls. The oblivious couple so incensed Deepali Issar who was standing behind them that she hit the young man leading to, by her own admission, “him shrieking out in agony.” Several other cinema-goers too joined Deepali Issar in heckling and abusing the young man.“My wife, who has always been a strong minded person, gave a big phatka to the man on his head,” said an approving Puneet Issar.The couple finally stood up and asked the Issars what their problem was, said our source who did not wish to be identified, perhaps terrified of incurring Deepali Issar’s ire again.“How come you don’t understand what is required? Is this your respect for your country? I asked him,” recalled Deepali. At which, the man responded, “But I am not an Indian.” “Don’t lie. You look Indian,” Deepali shot back. It transpired that he was of Indian origin but an Australian citizen. Not to be outshone Puneet Issar jumped in and told the man that he ought to be handed over to the police.With the wisdom of hindsight Deepali Issar says, “I understand hitting him was a volatile and reckless action on my part, but it was absolutely instinctive. Thankfully, he stood up after getting that blow from me.”The Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, has this to say about the national anthem, “Whoever intentionally prevents the singing of the Indian National Anthem or causes disturbances to any assembly engaged in such singing shall be punished with imprisonment for a term, which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.” It clearly seems to indicate that sitting silently through the anthem will not invite punishment. Rather, Deepali’s tantrum during the anthem might qualify as a disturbance.“When I tell people to stand up for the national anthem, they say it is an everyday thing, how often do you want us to stand up,” said Aditi Mitra. 28, who lives in Powai. Some cinema patron are so lazy that by the time they stand up half the anthem is over, she added. Nisha Chandiramani, 69 agrees that all should stand up for the anthem, but she feels Deepali had no right to abuse or hit the man.Film-maker Mahesh Bhatt speculated that Indian-Australian in all probability followed all the rules wherever he claimed to live. “It is a sad matter that many among the elite and the wealthy think they are cool if they remain seated when the anthem is being played. The sentiment of the nation should be respected in totality, be it a theatre or any public place.”Yashesh Shat, 28, an HR professional, felt the national anthem should not be compulsorily played in a cinema hall in the first place: “You cannot enforce patriotism.”Actress Padmini Kolhapure said she has often taken foreigners to Indian cinema theatres. They don’t know what to do and have to be told things, she says: “I personally believe that discipline should be enforced, but politely.”