'Ajey' director breaks silence on legal battle with CBFC
What's the story
The biopic on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, titled Ajey: The Untold Story of a Yogi, has been caught up in legal battles with the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). Despite following all legal protocols, the film was repeatedly rejected by the board. Director Ravindra Gautam recently opened up about this stressful ordeal. The film is finally releasing on September 19 after months of delays.
Director's dismay
'They were just rejecting the film': Gautam
Gautam told Zoom, "When we gave them the film, we told them that nothing objectionable is there." "They saw the film. We were not able to perceive why they were just not giving the censor (certificate)." "They were just rejecting the film. It's not that they were not giving the censor certificate, they were rejecting the film." "They straight away rejected it first."
Legal proceedings
Court ordered 29 cuts
Gautam revealed, "We went to the court and then they gave us 29 cuts, and these were small things." The director claims that despite having acquired rights from the book's (The Monk Who Became Chief Minister) author, Shantanu Gupta, CBFC still demanded unnecessary clearances. "I don't know why they were asking for an NOC from the Chief Minister (of UP). "My producers had sorted out all the legalities and decided to go ahead. All legal angles were taken care of."
Film production
'We tried to make it as silently as possible...'
The filmmaker shared, "We tried to make it as silently as possible without much political brouhaha." "Because we were aware that while making the film, there may be a lot of problems. That's why we just made the film." "It was a human story, everything was there in the book, and that's how we made it."
Cautious approach
It was a huge sigh of relief, says Gautam
Gautam also revealed that both the examining and reviewing committees had rejected the film, leaving them baffled, but Bombay HC's mediation has saved the movie. "It was a huge sigh of relief because we were very tense. For the past 2 months, we were under so much pressure." "I think they were being extra cautious in these times because they were all unsure what would happen after the film."