The writer has been needlessly aggressive in the expression of his ideas (“A case for cutting out the censor”, June 13). Viewed from any angle, his points are fundamentally unacceptable. A film does need to be vetted before release.
The Central Board of Film Certification is armed with the task of ensuring that a film should adhere to certain parameters since audiences of all ages might view it. To suggest doing away with the censor board is an extreme view. Under the guise of permitting free speech and expression, one cannot turn a blind eye to provocative scenes and dialogues. No responsible citizen will think on those lines. Restraint and sobriety are essential. How is it that a number of films have been cleared by the same censor board without a hitch?
V. Lakshmanan,Tirupur, Tamil Nadu
It is a much-too-facile argument to say that people are mature enough to make enlightened decisions and take responsibility for them simply because Article 19(2) empowers them. We are a nation wherein there need to be laws for almost everything. An example I can think of is making not wearing helmets and fastening seat belts an offence because people are not “mature enough” to ensure their own safety. A Govind Nihalani or a Shyam Benegal may depict physical intimacy with a high quotient of artistic vision and thematic linkages, but for the vast majority they will still remain as scenes that titillate their baser instincts.
The argument of freedom with maturity is in fact a West-inspired ploy to introduce disarray in the social system through a subjective and self-serving interpretation of values. It is an ingenious way of destroying indigenous cultural values through remote manipulation.
Pratap Codadu,Hyderabad
Udta Punjab may not be the classic example of mindless obsession for censorship, but it marks a point in the trend of a steady but invisible political writ of quelling any sign of criticism or dissent against the powers that be.
All talk about concern for the image of the State and its people is hypocritical, when extensive research points to drug peddling and abuse across the State. One can only doubt the Punjab government’s ability to control the drug mafia and its rather nonchalant attitude towards finding a solution to a dangerous problem especially in a society known for its productivity and bravery.
Chandran Dharmalingam,Udhagamandalam
Anurag Kashyap has raised an important issue about the menace of drugs. How many of us know about the case of a mother who lost all her three sons to drugs or about a man who sold all his ancestral land, house and four daughters to keep his drug habit going? These are just two of countless cases reported in 2015. We need a film to highlight this.
Tushar Ruhil,Bahadurgarh, Haryana
The writer has forcefully argued a case for doing away with film censorship as it has only become a thorn in the flesh for film-makers and ended up curbing creativity and killing realism. In the case of Udta Punjab , it was the unrelenting attitude of the censor board chairperson that stoked the controversy. Censoring films is in itself an anachronism in these days of high-speed Internet connectivity. The sooner it is dispensed with the better for the industry.
C.V. Aravind,Bengaluru
