Well-known economics professor and National Award-winning filmmaker Suman Ghosh’s another film has encountered a barrier regarding the film’s release in India. We are talking about his directorial feature film titled ‘Aadhaar’ starring the immensely talented ‘Mukkabaaz’ actor Vineet Kumar Singh alongside veteran performers Saurabh Shukla and Raghuvir Yadav.
Interestingly, ‘Aadhaar’ was already cleared by the film certification body CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) way back in the year 2019. However, as per a recent TOI report, UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) has proposed 28 cuts to the film and that too allegedly without any legal authority to do so. The film’s release will probably be postponed once again until a mutual agreement happens between the two sides.
Regarding the matter, Suman Ghosh had stated (via TOI) that “The film was meant to release commercially on February 5 this year. Just after the trailer launch in January, my producer (Jio Studios) got a call from UIDAI officials asking for a screening. I wasn’t in India at the time. The film was screened for officials in Delhi in February following which they suggested 28 cuts for clearance.”
For those who are not aware, ‘Aadhaar’ is a dramedy film that follows the story of a villager Pharsua (Vineet Kumar Singh) who becomes the first person in his village to get his Aadhaar card made. But an inauspicious prediction by the village priest sets Pharsua on a mission to change his Aadhaar card number. The film was previously supposed to release in February 2021.
Although the filmmaker has himself suggested that there is no legal validity for UIDAI to stop the film’s release, it draws our attention to the matter of the recently proposed amendments to Cinematograph Act of 1952. In case the act is amended as per the proposal, it would enable the Centre, to re-examine, if necessary, a film already cleared by CBFC.
The proposed amendment was met with widespread disagreement by eminent filmmakers including Farhan Akhtar, Kamal Haasan, Hansal Mehta, Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee and many others. The film fraternity was of the opinion that the amendment, if implemented, could possibly endanger freedom of expression and democratic dissent. The news came a few months after the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal was abolished. Previously, the tribunal was the go-to body that was approached by the filmmakers who were aggrieved with CBFC’s decisions.
Another school of thought implies that even before the proposed amendment, many films were censored by the courts. Moreover, in some cases, film scenes were modified under the courts’ guidance. Besides, there have also been protests regarding non-screening of some films. So, the draft bill, according to some might help in averting these situations and the amendments will hopefully be conducive to the development and safety of the film industry.
Whether UIDAI’s proposed cuts for Suman Ghosh’s directorial film ‘Aadhaar’ might prove to be a prelude of what’s next to come for the filmmakers, after the amendments to the Cinematograph Act are implemented, or the second school of thought might hold true, remains to be seen.