Censor Board cuts Prakash Jha’s dig at the Prime Minister

[email protected] (Subhash K Jha)
October 1, 2012

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Trust Prakash Jha's cinema to constantly raise provocative political issues and instigate the censor board into ordering substantial cuts. We've come to know from very reliable sources that Prakash's Chakravyuh has been ordered six cuts, most of them verbal.

The film has been passed with a 'UA' certificate,which means underage viewers can watch the film accompanied by an adult.

Informs our source from the Censor Board of Film Certification (CBFC), "There were direct references to politicians, political scandals and a specially pointed reference to 'Sardari' (meaning leadership as well as a reference to the Sikh community whose individuals are known as Sardars) which we thought was a direct hit at the Prime Minister. Those had to go."

One sentence that has been removed from the film refers to the Mahatama. Says our source, "A character says, 'Majboori ka naam Mahatma Gandhi'. Now this may be a commonly used phrase of despair in everyday life. But we can't have Mahatma Gandhi equated with majboori (helplessness) on a medium as powerful as cinema. So we asked the phrase to be removed."

Elsewhere a character is accused of getting his job through 'quota' (reservation) and hence inept at his work. That has been cut. Also cut by the censors is a reference to the allegedly underhand activities of a fictional 'Mahanta' group of industries based in London.

Says our source at the CBFC, "From the pointers and references including the London location it was clear that the 'Mahanta' group referred to the Vedanta group of industries. We had to ask for that to be cut. That apart we asked a couple of abuses to be deleted. Then there was a scene of visual violence where a man's ear is chopped off and displayed on screen. We've asked the ear to be blurred on screen."

But it's the 'Mehngaai' song in Chakravyuh that has raised the censorboard's hackle the most. While the disclaimer for the number has gotten it past the censorboard, it was the deletion of one line making a barbed and unmistakable reference to a 'Sardar' that actually got the song past censors.

Says our censorial source, "The song sneered, 'Bahut dekhi teri sardari.' That, we felt was a direct hint at the Prime Minister. It had to go. Our guidelines clearly state dialogue or scene cannot caste aspersions on individuals, least of all the person holding the highest political post."

Referring to Prakash Jha's defence about using the 'Tata, Birla' names as metaphors in the song the source from the CBFC says, "Metaphors are a wonderful tool for expression . But they can't be used on a public platform in a negative way. Years ago Manoj Kumar's Roti Kapada Aur Makaan had a beautiful 'Mehngaai' song. It didn't have to name any politician or cast aspersions on any individual to prove how inflation has hit the common man."

J.P. Singh, the CBFC's Regional Officer Mumbai, confirmed the above cuts.



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News Network
March 26,2020

Mumbai, Mar 25: Filmmakers and actors, including Karan Johar, Taapsee Pannu and Ayushmann Khurrana, have pledged their support to a new initiative aimed at supporting the daily wage-earners who have been severely affected by the lockdown imposed to combat coronavirus.
The country is witnessing a 21-day lockdown, as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to contain the spread of the virus, which has claimed the lives of over 20,000 people globally.

The initiative, I Stand With Humanity, started by organisations -- the International Association for Human Values, the Art of Living Foundation and the Indian Film and TV Industry, will provide families of daily wage workers with 10 days of essential food supplies.

"I pledge to contribute and support this initiative! This is a situation that needs all our help, love, care and support," Karan posted on Twitter.

Taapsee said everyone must come forward to help the daily wage workers.

"This one for the daily wage workers. Because we need to do our bit for the ones who work with/for us. If not corona, lack of basic food might take them down. Let's help them to get through this," the actor wrote.

Ayushmann described the initiative as "truly noble".

"I vow to support this and contribute. India and Indians are under threat and each one of us have the power to make a difference. Let's support and care for each other as much as we can in this time of crisis. #Istandwithhumanity," he tweeted.

Kiara Advani and Rakul Preet Singh also pledged to contribute towards the initiative.

"Let's contribute! While some of us are safe at home, we can help those struggling right now... donate," Kiara said.

Rakul tweeted, "I support this noble initiative. Happy to contribute for this humanitarian cause. While staying safe at home, I urge every one else also to contribute online."

Actor Varun Sharma said, "I pledge to contribute & support this initiative #iStandWithHumanity"

"In times like these, we need to step up for the ones in need. I'm happy to contribute for this humanitarian cause. And guys whoever can help, you all can also contribute online," actor Sidharth Malhotra tweeted.

Filmmaker Nitesh Tiwari wrote, "There are a lot of daily wage earners who need our help during this tough time. Please help as much as you can. Here's the link to contribute online."

Actor Bhumi Pednekar said it was important to get together and help those who are "vulnerable and in need".

Actor Dia Mirza said, "We are in this together. YES we will help #DailyWageEarners get through this with hope and dignity. I am contributing to this effort and I hope many others in our fraternity will do as well."

Filmmakers Aanand L Rai and Sanjay Gupta have also backed the cause.

"One of the greatest gift a person can give another, is support. I whole heartily support this noble initiative. While staying safe at home, I urge every one else also to contribute online," Aanand tweeted.

Gupta called upon the public to help the daily wage-earners through the initiative.

On March 18, the Producers Guild of India had announced that they have set up a relief fund for daily wage-earners impacted by the shutdown of film, television and web productions amid coronavirus pandemic.

Their decision came after many filmmakers, including Sudhir Mishra, Vikramaditya Motwane and Anurag Kashyap, raised concerns over the impact of shutdown on the daily wage workers.

South star Pawan Kalyan announced on Twitter that he will donate Rs 1 crore to PM relief fund.

B N Tiwari, President of Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), however, claimed there has been no help from Bollywood personalities or the Producers Guild of India so far.

"In the South, Rajinikanth has donated Rs 50 lakh which is a great thing. But here, we haven't received any call or help from anyone from Bollywood yet."

"There is one production company called Frames that produces TV shows, they have given ration worth Rs 25 lakh but it is stuck at Navi Mumbai and we haven't been able to give that to workers as they can't come here. We are toying with the idea of taking help of police authorities to give the ration to the workers," Tiwari told news agency.

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News Network
May 25,2020

New Delhi, May 25: Sending out good wishes on the auspicious of Eid, actor Sara Ali Khan on Sunday shared a priceless childhood throwback picture, along with her picture from the current days.

The 'Simmba' star put out the cute picture on Instagram where she is seen clad in a pink hijab, while on the other hand, the second picture features the younger Sara as she is seen sporting a black dupatta while she tries to imitate the younger self.

Along with the picture, she wrote," Eid Mubarak," and urged people to stay safe by staying at home and urged them to stay positive amid the COVID-19 outbreak with "#staysafe #stayhome #staypositive."

The post on the photo-sharing platform garnered more than one lakh likes within an hour of being posted.

Lately, the 'Kedarnath' star has been keeping her fans updated on her quarantine activities by sharing pictures and videos of her quarantine activities.

Earlier, Sara took a trip down the memory lane and reminisced her graduation day by sharing throwback pictures from the ceremony.

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News Network
April 30,2020

Mumbai, Apr 29: Veteran actor Rishi Kapoor is not keeping well and has been admitted to a city hospital here, his elder brother Randhir Kapoor said.

The 67-year-old actor was taken to H N Reliance hospital by his family on Wednesday morning.

"He is in the hospital. He is suffering from cancer and he has some breathing problem, so he has been admitted to the hospital. He is stable now," Randhir told PTI.

The actor returned to India last September after undergoing treatment for cancer in the US for almost a year.

In February, Kapoor was hospitalised twice due to his health issues.

He was first admitted to a hospital in Delhi where he was attending a family function. At the time, Kapoor had said that he was suffering from an "infection".

After his return to Mumbai, he was again admitted to a hospital with viral fever. He was discharged soon after.

Kapoor, who has been quite active on social media, hasn't posted anything on his Twitter account since April 2.

The actor recently announced his next project, a remake of Hollywood film "The Intern", also featuring Deepika Padukone.

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