Purab Kohli is the latest in the list of film personalities to speak up and speak out against the Central Board of Film Certification. According to a story in HT, Purab says that the board is archaic in its approach, and is treating the film-viewing public as children, and deciding what they can or cannot see.
“The fight against archaic censorship rules has been going on for a long time now. People should now realise that films are not just made for entertainment purposes. Apart from providing entertainment, films also help in opening up minds of individuals. CBFC’s rules take away that freedom from us. It treats (us) like a bunch of five-year-olds, and thinks it can tell us what to watch or not watch,” Purab said.
Purab Kohli’s comments come on the back of a plea by Amol Palekar challenging the system of “pre-censorship” that the CBFC follows. In the petition, he says, “Absence of a member with a legal background in CBFC often leads the board to repeatedly violate filmmakers’ fundamental right to speech and expression.”
Palekar’s petition asks for a complete revamp of the Cinematography Act. “The rules have to change in the present days (when) Internet and social media dominate. When content on television and Internet is free of censorship, the same content being altered, cut or deleted before being shown in a cinema hall is an attack on our right to equality.”
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Purab Kohli echoed this comment, “Obviously no one is saying that there should not be any check or anything like that. But the model needs to change, and the rating system is the way to do that. Classify the film based on the content correctly and give them PG ratings. Then go and do the crackdown on theatres and see if they are following the ratings or not.”
But all is not lost, Purab thinks. He believes more people are coming out to talk about it.
Meanwhile, the Shyam Benegal committee that is looking at the revamp of the Cinematograph Act is *still* waiting for a response.
Pic: Indian Express