Bollywood Hungama was one in all the primary ones to tell readers on March 10 that the makers of a Bhojpuri film, Rang De Basanti, have accused the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chairperson, Prasoon Joshi, of deliberately delaying the censor process as their film has an identical name to that of a 2006 Hindi film, starring Aamir Khan. They claim that Prasoon might be doing in order he was related to the Hindi film as a lyricist. After the news grabbed several eyeballs, the CBFC presented a listing of cuts to the makers. Though it didn’t mention that the name of the film must be modified, the modifications asked by the CBFC’s Examining Committee were considered unfair by the makers. With the film’s release just a couple of days away, the producer, Roshan Singh, knocked on the doors of the Bombay High Court. Sadly, the Court refused to grant them relief. Consequently, Rang De Basanti won’t have the opportunity to make it to cinemas this Friday, March 22.
EXCLUSIVE: Rang De Basanti makers knock on Bombay High Court’s doors over long list of cuts given by CBFC; March 22 release of Bhojpuri film CANCELLED; producer says, “I’ll face a lack of nearly Rs. 10 crores. It’s DEVASTATING”
An industry insider told us, “The CBFC’s side argued that the producer must have followed due process and approached the Revising Committee (RC) first as a substitute of approaching the court directly. The makers argued that RC was able to entertain them only after a month and hence, they decided to maneuver Court. Justice G S Kulkarni and Justice Firdosh P Pooniwalla asked the RC to look at the film and submit the report inside 10 days. But March 22 is just 4 days away. In other words, Rang De Basanti’s release stands cancelled.”
Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to producer Roshan Singh and he said, “We requested the judges that we’re in need of time and it won’t be possible to attend for 10 days. But they didn’t relent. Hence, Rang De Basanti won’t arrive in cinemas on March 22.”
He further said with a heavy heart, “I’ll face a lack of nearly Rs. 10 crores attributable to this delay. It’s devastating. There’s a whole lot of excitement for this film. It was going to get the most important release ever for a Bhojpuri film, in around 500 screens.”
Rang De Basanti stars Khesari Lal Yadav, Rati Pandey, Diana Khan and is directed by Premanshu Singh
Bollywood Hungama went through the cut list provided by the EC to the makers. The makers were asked to cut back violence by 50% in a fight sequence firstly of the film and the scene where the lead actor uses a trishul to fight the baddies. In addition they asked the makers to delete religious-related terms and words like ‘Allah Hu Akbar’, ‘Hindu’, ‘Hindutva’, ‘Pawan Putra Hanuman’, ‘Bhagwadhari’, etc. The makers were also told to delete the word ‘Haramzaade’.
The industry insider said, “The cuts asked by the EC were unjustified and hence, the makers had no option but to approach the court.”
The Rang De Basanti vs CBFC row has sent shockwaves within the industry from the very start. Though the censor screening of the film took place on February 19 and the screening report was submitted on February 21, the method was delayed attributable to an absence of clearance from the chairperson. The makers wrote letters and requested the method to be fastened but their plea fell on deaf ears. The matter became so serious that Abhay Sinha, president of the Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA) too wrote to the CBFC requesting urgent clearance.
Bollywood Hungama spoke to Roshan Singh on March 10 and he had then claimed, “On March 8, I got a call from CBFC and I used to be asked, ‘Kya aap apni film ka title change kar sakte hai kya?’. I made it clear that it’s impossible as we’ve got begun the publicity and the fabric has gone out.”
Also Read: SHOCKING: CBFC chairperson Prasoon Joshi accused of delaying censor strategy of Bhojpuri film Rang De Basanti as its title is analogous to 2006 Hindi movie; Pahlaj Nihalani LASHES out, “Prasoon ne producers ko laawaris bana ke rakha hai”
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