CBFC chief Pahlaj Nihalani is angry that some producers end up releasing their films without proper certification. He said he had a list of such offenders, and would take strong criminal action against them.
“Producers have been sending their films overseas without proper censor certification for many years now. Earlier, deadlines could be beaten by ‘purchasing’ censor certificates for as little as Rs. 10,000. I put an end to this unsavoury practice. So, producers found a new devious method of beating the deadline. They dispatch their films to the overseas market without certificates or with wrong certificates,” he told DNA in an interview.
Sometimes, he said, “they come without the full background score, or incomplete dubbing or a missing song. Let me inform them that this is against the rules. A films must be submitted only after it is complete. Nothing can be added after it is handed over to the censors”.
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This isn’t the first time the CBFC chief has spoken about taking strict action against those who defy him. In May, Nihalani warned filmmakers that he would act against them if films were screened at international and national film festivals without the necessary censor certificates. He further said that filmmakers need special permission to screen films that are uncensored. Many film festivals prefer screening uncensored, “director’s cut” films, but the CBFC head has warned against this practice.
Nihalani is infamous for his regressive attitude when it comes to what must and must not be shown in films. He last made headlines when he refused to allow the use of the word ‘intercourse’ in the trailer of Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma’s upcoming film Jab Harry Met Sejal.
Feature Image: The Logical Indian