On a day that Vishwaroopam released to packed houses in theatres across the city, actor and film-maker Kamal Haasan clarified that the version of the film that released in Tamil Nadu suffered only aural cuts.
In a statement, he said: “I write this to inform my admirers who think a large portion is lost in this battle for freedom of speech. Nothing is lost except the sounds of Koran recital and a few dialogues by Omar Qureshi in the film. So finally what Vishwaroopam lost was just some sound clips. No visuals were touched. The visual part of Vishwaroopam is intact.”
A section of fans, who watched the shows on the first day here, after having watched it last week in other States — including theatres in Bangalore and in some parts of Kerala — said the version that hit the screens here did not vary much from the other versions of the movie. Some of them recalled that an introductory credit card was missing here and there was a partial blackout of a banner in a particular scene.
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Most city theatres that regularly screen Kamal Haasan movies — of the likes of Devi and Woodlands — had massive banners and decorative cut-outs of the actor put up by fans’ associations.