Arun Jaitley says major changes in film certification system soon.
By Dileep Thekkethil
The Central Board of Film Certification, which is a statutory censorship and classification body under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has been under the fire after the board chairman Pahlaj Nihalani stirred a row over the cuts in Shahid Kapoor-starrer ‘Udta Punjab’.
Nihalani accused that ‘Udta Punjab’ was funded by the Aam Aadmi Party to tarnish the prospects of BJP in the election in Punjab that is due in two years.
The relationship between the filmmakers and the Censor Board has been at loggerheads for a long time and this is principally due to the powers, rules and regulations set to be followed by CBFC.
Minister of Information and Broadcasting Arun Jaitley during a press conference said that he is not satisfied with existing film certification system, and people can expect ‘radical changes’ soon.
Currently, the censor board has asked the director of ‘Udta Punjab’ to make 83 cuts in the movie including, removing the word Punjab from the title and excessive swearing.
There has been an online backlash against the board and its chairman and a satire titled “S** Indian Censors Say” takes a dig at the war of words between CBFC Chairman and the makers of ‘Udta Punjab’.
The short satirical video featuring Richa Chadda, Namrata Rao, and Kartik Krishnan through the use of strong language and profane words, lashes out against the board.
While hearing a case on the cuts, the Bombay high court today pointed out that CBFC is just a body that was meant to certify films and not censor them, a proposition made by many filmmakers.