‘Udta Punjab’ a very well-made film, says Shyam Benegal

Veteran filmmaker Shyam Benegal, who heads the government-appointed revamp panel of the Central Board of Film Certification’s (CBFC), on Wednesday watched the controversial ‘Udta Punjab’ and appreciated it for being “very well-made”.

A special screening of the movie was organised for Benegal after the censor board suggested 89 cuts to the movie, leading to a battle between co-producer Anurag Kashyap and the CBFC.

After the movie’s screening, Benegal told media here: “If you ask me technically, it’s a very well-made film.”

Benegal’s committee includes as members Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Piyush Pandey, Bhawana Somaaya and Nina Lath Gupta. Sanjay Murthy, Joint Secretary (Films), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, is member-convener.

Mehra told IANS that the committee’s recommendation is that the “scissors” of the censor board must be abolished.

Their recommendations were submitted to the government in April.

Inputs by IANS

Also Read: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra: Abolish censor board’s scissors