HC clears ‘Udta Punjab’ with just one cut and a change in disclaimer

The Bombay High Court on Monday said there was no justification in directing the deletion of signboard of Punjab in the film, ‘Udta Punjab’, which deals with drug menace in the State.

The court cleared the movie for release with just one cut and a modification in the disclaimer. The HC directed the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to issue A certificate to the film by Wednesday and okayed the release of the film on Friday.

“We do not find anything in the script of the movie that affects the sovereignty of the nation,” the HC observed. It noted thar it was for filmmakers to choose the setting of their films as it was the underlying key to creative freedom. The film was made for adults and that no one could dictate the filmmaker without abusing creative freedom.

“So many litigants awaiting justice in the State. ‘Udta Punjab’ is hardly a cause that should be brought to highest court of the State,” the HC ruled.

The CBFC was not empowered by law to censor films, as the word censor was not included in the Cinematograph Act, the court said adding that freedom of creative expression was absolute and could never be restricted.

The Board had cleared the film with 13 cuts under the ‘A’ category, Its chairman Pahlaj Nihalani said on Sunday.

Mr. Nihalani, in the eye of a storm for demanding a large number of cuts, said nine members of the Board watched the film and “unanimously” cleared it after the proposed 13 cuts.

“The CBFC’s job is now over. It is now up to the producer to go to the court or tribunal. We will implement the order,” Mr. Nihalani said.

After the verdict, the movie’s director Abhishek Chaubey said he was “massively relieved”.

“Massively relieved today, looking to release the film on the scheduled date,” Mr. Chaubey told the media here.

Also, co-producer Anurag Kashyap tweeted:

Mr. Kashyap’s lawyer said the victory is all the more important as the film tells a relevant tale. “The film is relevant about what’s happening in Punjab. Our victory is primarily that we based our film on Punjab and we are not shying away from it. That is why we went to court,” the lawyer said. He added that there was a “word of caution” for filmmakers in terms of “verbage”.

“There is a word of caution for filmmakers in term of verbage and its use that can be there… It is left upon us in a sense (that) the industry has to decide what kind of usage we can have.”