Amid reports that the Central Board of Film Certification has asked the makers of Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Pathaan to make changes to the shots used in its song Besharam Rang, lyricist-writer Javed Akhtar has said filmmakers need to have “trust” in the film certification body that has the authority to decide what will and what will not make the final cut.
His comments came a day before the trailer launch of Pathaan, a high-octane spy thriller Pathaan, directed by Siddharth Anand.
Referring to the CBFC as a “department” under the central government”, the 77-year-old industry veteran said, “It is not for me or you to decide whether the song is right or wrong. We have an agency.
“There are people from the government and a cross-section of the society watching the film and deciding what will be passed and what will not be passed.
“I think we should have trust in that certification, the cuts that they suggest and what they pass,” Akhtar said.
According to reports, the CBFC suggested the film’s production banner Yash Raj Films make changes to Besharam Rang and remove all the mentions of the Indian intelligence agency RAW and Prime Minister’s Office from the movie, scheduled to be released on January 25.
Deepika Padukone, featuring as a lead role in a saffron bikini, Besharam Rang has found itself in the centre of a proverbial storm for allegedly hurting religious sentiments.
Meanwhile, Protests in several parts of the country have been held against the song.
Last week, posters of Pathaan were vandalised in a mall in Ahmedabad and members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal stated they would not allow the screening of the movie in Gujarat unless their issues over the song were resolved.
Last month, Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra took objection to Padukone’s costume in the Besharam Rang and had said if certain scenes are not “corrected”, the government will consider what to do about its screening in the state.
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