After boxoffice duds, jingoism runs into a new hurdle: the censor board
NEW DELHI : If the makers of The Sabarmati Report, Jahangir National University, and Hum Do Hamare Baarah were hoping to ride the pre-election fervour, they were in for a disappointment. Not because of the boxoffice failures that have befallen other recent so-called nationalist movies, but because of delays by the censor board.
The reason for the delays: not the content; rather, the censor board wants to avoid controversies, especially of the political kind, as the world’s largest democracy elects its next government. “The censor board is of the view that it is wiser to wait until the elections are over given how the model code of conduct operates, and has communicated to the makers that they shall not be approving certification at the moment," film producer, trade and exhibition expert Girish Johar said.
In 2019, ahead of the previous national election, the censor board had cleared a movie called PM Narendra Modi, based on the prime minister, only for the Election Commission to step in and stop the film’s release during the polls. Prasoon Joshi, chair of the Central Board of Film Certification, did not reply to Mint’s queries on the delays in certification for the new titles.
But a member of the CBFC conceded that censor board was keen on avoiding any controversy at the moment. Backed by producer Ektaa Kapoor, The Sabarmati Report is based on the 2002 fire that engulfed the Sabarmati Express train, killing 59 people and igniting the Gujarat riots.
Jahangir National University is set in the backdrop of college politics impacting national politics, while Hum Do Hamare Baarah deals with the issue of population explosion. Multiple movies with political, religious or nationalist overtones, or bearing a combination of those
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