Censor Board behaving like Taliban, says filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj

The CBFC has been under a lot of scrutiny ever since former Censor Board Chief Leela Samson decided to quit. Pahlaj Nihalani was brought in her place to put an end to the controversies, but it looks like he has managed to spark more fire with his recent decisions. Putting out new censorship rules almost after every meeting, the Censor Board’s decisions to chop off some cuss words and censor certain type of scenes in films has definitely raised the hackles of Indian filmmakers.

Director Vishal Bhardwaj, in a recent interview, also shot back at the Board. When questioned about the Board’s decision to censor abuses from films, Vishal clearly stated that the Censor Board was behaving like the ‘Taliban’.

He also requested the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to put an end to the mess and asked the Government to restrict actions of the Board. Films being the ‘mirrors of reality’, are another form of art and Vishal clarified that more than creating reality, films reflect the reality. Condemning their dominating nature, Vishal said that the Censor Board’s ‘scissors should be snatched away and thrown into a valley’.

But will such protests bring about a change in the Censor Board’s functions? Only time will tell.