The Karni Sena
threatened to cut-off
the nose of the film’s
leading lady as the
actress has bared
her midriff while
dancing!
violence on the streets is defi nitely not allowed.
This is only the tip of the iceberg. If the Government
allows them to get away with this, then you will fi nd
them at your door tomorrow, telling you what to wear,
what to eat and how to behave.”
OTHER FILMS TARGETTED TOO
Though there has been much hullabaloo about
‘Padmavati’, this is not an isolated case. Two lesser
known, but highly critically acclaimed regional fi lms
‘S Durga’ and ‘Nude’, have met a similar fate at the
IFFI (International Film Festival of India) recently.
The fi lms, which were strongly applauded by the jury,
were all set to be screened at the prestigious fi lm fest
in Goa, but were denied permission at the last minute
by the Central Board of Film Certifi cation. This led
to strong protests by the jury with its Chairperson,
director Sujoy Ghosh, even stepping down, and
veteran actress Shabana Azmi demanding a boycott
of IFFI. Yet, the fi lms have not been issued a license.
SLAM ON WOMEN EMPOWERMENT?
Strangely, the common factor between these movies
is that they have strong women characters. ‘S Durga’
is a gripping tale of a migrant worker who elopes
with her lover only to be picked up by goons. The
underlying fear of the girl at the lustful and menacingstares of the goons, portrays what every girl in Indian
society goes through – ‘rape by stare’. On the other
hand, ‘Nude’ is a powerful narration of a poor mother
who models nude for artists to support her son. Her
ability to face life and live with fortitude makes the
movie a powerful account.
In a newspaper column titled ‘Why are we so scared
of the Ladies?’, writer, politician and activist Pritish
Nandy sheds some light on the patriarchal mindsets
ruling the fate of Indian fi lms: “During the infamous
Nihalani era, the CBFC refused certifi cation to
‘Lipstick Under My Burkha’ on the grounds thatStills of the song ‘Ghoomar’ from the film ‘Padmavati’SAVVY DECEMBER 2017 126