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Ministry Asked Me Not To Clear 'Udta Punjab', Smriti Irani Sacked Me For Not Following Orders: Pahlaj Nihalani

Pahlaj Nihalani drops the bomb.
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Lehren TV

Days after being sacked as the chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), Pahlaj Nihalani has given a bombshell interview, where he's claimed that he was sacked for not following the orders of newly-elected Union Information and Broadcasting Minister, Smriti Irani.

In an interview with senior journalist Bharati Pradhan for Lehren TV, Nihalani has alleged that Smriti Irani likes to make a splash in whichever Ministry she joins. "At the I&B Ministry, I was their target number 1. It all started when I didn't clear Madhur Bhandarkar's Indu Sarkar. She gave me a call asking why I hadn't done so. I said, I was following guidelines and now the film is already with the Tribunal. I told her if she wants she can get it cleared from the Tribunal. I wasn't massaging her ego and it was only a matter of time before I was thrown out," he said.

Nihalani, however, said that he doesn't think Ekta Kapoor had anything to do with his sacking (a few reports suggested Ekta's proximity with Smriti could've led to his exit).

The former Censor Board chief also went on record to say that he was instructed by the Ministry (didn't specify which) to not clear Abhishek Chaubey's controversial drugs-drama, Udta Punjab, a film that exposed the police-political nexus in enabling the supply of drugs in Punjab.

He said, "There was pressure from every side to not clear the film. I cannot tell you how much pressure I was under. Despite that, I cleared the film albeit with cuts (there were over 70 cuts until the Bombay High Court allowed the film's release with a single one). There was a letter from the Home Ministry to not clear Kabir Khan's Bajrangi Bhaijaan as it was releasing on Eid and they feared that it could lead to communal problems."

Nihalani said that despite a stern letter from the Home Ministry to not clear Bajrangi Bhaijaan, he stood his ground. "I knew the story. It wasn't what they feared. There was miscommunication. I stood by the makers. Yet I was made out to be the villain. Such is the industry," he rued, before calling Kabir Khan 'useless,' and Anurag Kashyap a publicity hound.

Watch the full interview here.

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6 Times Anushka Sharma Nailed It While Speaking About Censorship
(01 of06)
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Yeah… because ultimately you are making a film which is an honest rendition of something that exists in our society, and there is no glorification of anything that can be objectionable.
On being asked whether the censor troubles that NH10 went through worried her, as one of the producers of the film.
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(02 of06)
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There is rage. And that is the other thing. Our rage doesn’t unleash itself because we follow the system – judiciary, police etc. So our rage is directed at the systems that don’t work. We all talk about freedom of speech and having opinions. But what is happening is that there is moral policing and people saying that I am so convinced about my opinion that I will be pissed off if you don’t agree with me. That is why we are talking about bans, and taking out material from films.
On why she thinks 'moral policing' occurs in India
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(03 of06)
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I just think there is just complete lack of compassion. When you make a film and you are told to reduce the violence. What is happening in real life is much more brutal. What we are making is much milder, and then you tell us to reduce by 30 percent? What does that mean? How do you do that?
On how she feels about the Censor Board's approach to cuts.
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(04 of06)
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Now I know when we are reading a script or making a movie, we are going to think “Is this going to get passed?” And that’s not how you want to make movies.
On how she feels rigid censorship will affect cinema
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(05 of06)
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We are breeding a 'ban mentality'. You are irritating people to the degree that it's suffocating them. We are educated people, we know what's right and what's not. Let us think for ourselves than follow a particular ideology.
When asked to describe the current climate of censorship in India
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(06 of06)
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Believe in the certification. It's there for a reason. Films depict what's there in reality.
On how she would like audiences to approach movies
(credit:BCCL)
-- This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.