At the 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) 2017, the members of the Indian Panorama selection jury took on the I&B ministry for dropping two films, Nude and SDurga, from the final lineup. Now it’s the turn of the selection committee members of the national competition section at the Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF 2018) for documentaries, shorts and animation to register their protest against the denial of screening of the film In the Shade of the Fallen Chinar directed by Fazil NC and Shawn Sebastian.
The film was officially selected for the national competition by them, it features in the festival’s brochure and was scheduled for public screening on January 29, 2018, but wasn’t eventually shown.
A joint statement signed by nine of the 12 members stated: “We stand in solidarity with the filmmakers and strongly condemn this act of censorship.” The signatories include filmmakers Anupama Srinivasan, Priyanka Chhabra, Gautam Sonti, Amudhan R.P., Sudarshan Juyal,
Rani Day Burra, Sandhya Kumar, Yapangnaro Longkumer and veteran film writer and critic Shoma Chatterjee.
When contacted the festival director Manish Desai said the 16-minute short documentary continues to officially be a part of the competition (does it mean that it would have been screened for the competition jury?) but can’t be screened publicly under the provisions stipulated in the Cinematograph Act. For a public screening it has to have either a censor certificate or an exemption from the ministry. “If certified we are open to screening it any time till the closing ceremony,” said Desai.
The film has been denied exemption for MIFF by the ministry but reportedly without giving any clear reasons. The documentary was also denied exemption for International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala (IDSFFK) last year. The film has since been in the public domain-playing on YouTube.
Earlier in the afternoon today a protest meet was held outside the Films Division building and the director MIFF was met.
The director MIFF is since said to have forwarded three appeals - by the selection committee, the delegates letter and the film directors’ appeal for reconsideration - to the ministry along with his own letter of appeal.
According to selection committee member, filmmaker Anupama Srinivasan, the film is all about a space for arts for the young people of the valley. It pitches the soothing touch of art against the turmoil. “On what basis are they stopping its screening?” wonders Srinivasan, conjecturing that it could be because of the “Azaadi” chants at the beginning of the film.
The biennial festival organised by the Films Division of the I&B ministry, kicked off on January 28 and will come to a close on Sunday, February 3.
