TV shies away from bold films

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(Above) After Preity, it’s Ekta Kapoor who is heading to Harvard for a course

The film won three National Awards and yet failed to impress the Censor Board when it came to TV viewing. The Information and Broadcasting Ministry stalled the TV premiere of The Dirty Picture. The film was to be aired yesterday afternoon on Sony.
Tushar Kapoor, who acted in the film, was disappointed. “Really unfortunate that after all the necessary cuts and a valid UA certificate, The Dirty Picture could not be telecast today on Sony TV,” he tweeted.
Reports suggest that for TV viewing more than 56 cuts were made in the film. And now, the ministry has asked the channel to air the film post 11 pm. Surprisingly, this is not the only film to have faced the ire of the I&B.
Earlier too there have been problems while giving TV rights to films like Love, Sex Aur Dhokha (that was aired post 11 pm), Ishqiya, Dev.D (many cuts were made in the films before being aired) among others.
More recently, even after 18 cuts, the Board did not clear Delhi Belly for a satellite release as they felt it doesn’t suit family viewing.
Rahul Mittra, the producer of the film Saheb, Biwi and Gangster that too has some adult content, says that it has become a problem for filmmakers. “Even after making the necessary cuts, we haven’t yet got the certificate to air the film on TV. It’s been more than a month. The ministry has problems with the extra-marital affair shown in the film. We can’t cut that. It’s an intrinsic part of the plot,” he says.
“There are so many commercials on air that are not at all appropriate for family viewing. But we all sit back and watch them. What happens to the censor then? It’s dismaying,” he says and adds that the Censor Borad should be a little more receptive.
Abhishek Chaubey, who directed Ishqiya, says that making a film takes a lot of effort. “It’s months and months of hard work by the entire crew and cast. It’s sad when it’s cut and chopped. Looking at the different mindset that our country has, the Censor Board’s decision to air the films with adult content post 11 is okay. But then the film shouldn’t be cut. It’s really unfair on the part of the people who have worked hard on it,” he says.