Censor board lacks consistency

The controversy surrounding drug use and violence in Abhishek Choubey’s Udta Punjab subsided after the Bombay High Court cleared it with a single cut, but the issue of censorship has scarcely been resolved. This is because of the inconsistent role of the Central Board for Film Certification (CBFC).

During the Udta Punjab row, the board appeared as the moral guardian of the nation. What has, however, escaped the attention of the media and others is the fact that similar content is regularly being cleared by the CBFC.

Some of the music videos that have been given the U/A certificate contain such words and terms as ‘Daaru on the rocks’, ‘Shoot’, ‘Punjabi shit’, ‘Goli’, ‘Talli’, ‘Taquila shot’, and ‘Daaru waale keede’. There doesn’t seem to be any consistency in the CBFC which sometimes becomes liberal by clearing movies and videos with content glamourizing alcohol and drugs and sometimes adopts a moralizing attitude.

However, the board never falters in blocking anything that can upset the powers that be. So, it promptly rejected a music video which depicted a person who looked like Prime Minister Narendre Modi and indulged in unsavory activities.