Ex-CBFC chief Pahlaj Nihalani opens up about his controversial tenure
The former chief of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and movie producer Pahlaj Nihalani had received heavy criticism during his tenure. Nihalani, who was sacked in 2017, recently opened up about being targeted by the film fraternity. He claimed that he was only following the set guidelines established by the management, saying he was "misunderstood" during his tenure. Here's more.
In an interview with Times Now, Nihalani has stated that in the name of creative freedom, one cannot show any form of content and needs to follow the established guidelines. Opining that he was only performing his duty, the producer has told the publication, "You cannot show what you want. I was telling them about the rule (sic)."
"I was making the noise, as the right picture should be shown. We have allowed foul language, but you cannot spoil the character. I had opposed obscenity, nudity and the use of abusive language," Nihalani added.
Nihalani, who feels he was "misunderstood," also stated that he was not being "partial" and was only doing the job assigned to him. He said, "I have been given some job assigned by the government along with the guidelines. I was not being partial. It was misunderstood (sic)." "Content makers wanted me to go, so that there could be a green signal," Nihalani added.
He also questioned why the attacks that he had faced during his tenure are not being leveled against the new management. "But the same system and guideline is there. In my tenure, people were targeting me more than CBFC. Why they are not targeting now?"
To recall, Nihalani had been labeled "sanskari" and severely criticized for suggesting unnecessary cuts to movies. He said, "If nobody is opposing you, how will you carry the light? You have to take the criticism, to understand the right and wrong." "I have understood people's mind and whatever I did was not out of personal enmity or had my opinion."
Nihalani was sacked on August 11, 2017, and was replaced by the lyricist Prasoon Joshi. During his tenure, he was known to be at odds with many filmmakers for chopping scenes, suggesting multiples cuts, and raising objections to kissing and nude scenes, as well as abusive language. His biggest controversy came with the movie Udta Punjab, for which he had reportedly suggested 89 cuts.
