We need a rating between ‘U/A’ and ‘A’, says former CBFC Chief Pahlaj Nihalani

Former Chairperson of CBFC, Pahlaj Nihalani was replaced by Prasoon Joshi sometime back. However, the ex-CBFC Chief cannot stop expressing his views on changes required in the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). During his tenure, he faced objections from many people for denying certification to movies and demanding plenty of cuts and beeps. He is of the opinion that the problems will never be solved, until the rating system gets improved.

Speaking in an interview, he said, “There are two cracks in the whole system that have not been addressed correctly, and therefore the wrong projection of CBFC has gone to the public. Most countries have rating systems. In our country, the rating system needs to be improved. We have ‘U’ (unrestricted), ‘U/A’ (parental guidance for children below the age of 12 years) and ‘A’ (restricted to adults) rating. We need a rating in between as well, and that is not happening. I joined as CBFC chief on January 18, 2015, and by February, I had written a letter to the government demanding a new rating system. We need a rating between ‘U/A’ and ‘A’.” (Also Read: Pahlaj Nihalani defends turning presenter for ‘Julie 2’, says he is still sanskari)

Elaborating with examples, he said, “For instance, ‘Kaabil’, which we gave a ‘U/A’ rating — which means children of 12+ are allowed to watch under the guidance of parents — got 15+ rating in London, which means children under the age of 15 are not allowed to watch it. ‘Baahubali 2’, which we gave ‘U/A’, got a 15+ rating abroad. So there are different rating systems that exist and we also need to bring that reform.”

He further said, “The crack in the system is there… Mr Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore came to Mumbai and said in public that CBFC is a certification board where we are not supposed to censor anything, but just certify. Following the rule book, how would you certify a film, if there is no rating between ‘U’ and ‘U/A’, between ‘U/A’ and ‘A’? How can you pass a film that hurts sentiments — whether it is religious, cultural, or national? Therefore, censorship is needed, and CBFC always existed to censor and certify films for public viewing.”

Inputs from IANS

Prajakta Ajgaonkar

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