Ishq Forever marks Lisa Ray’s return to Bollywood. PHOTO: FILE
The Sameer Sippy-directed romantic drama, Ishq Forever has been banned by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) in Pakistan.
“The CBFC panel had reviewed the film and found the content to be objectionable,” chairperson of CBFC, Mobasher Hasan, told The Express Tribune.
According to Hasan, the movie had been deemed unsuitable for release by the initial CBFC panel comprising five members. After the distributor of the film appealed for the film to be reviewed again by another panel, the movie was forwarded to a CBFC committee comprising ten independent members.
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“The ten-member-panel unanimously decided to ban Ishq Forever, citing the fact that the film is tarnishing the image of Islam and Muslims,” added the CBFC Chairman.
Although, even Sanjay Leela’s Bhansali’s Bajirao Mastani was deemed “against Islam” initially, the film was eventually released after a few cuts. When asked why they didn’t undertake a similar approach with Ishq Forever, Hasan responded that unlike Bajirao Mastani’s case – these cuts would have affected the film’s story.
The CBFC is not the only censor board to have banned the release of the movie in Pakistan with both the Punjab Board of Film Certification (PBFC) and Sindh Board of Film Certification (SBFC) also taking similar measures, stated Hasan.
The CBFC has also informed Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) of their decision, and requested cable operators to not screen the film.
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When approached for comment, an official of PBFC corroborated the film’s ban in Punjab whereas representatives of SBFC were not available to confirm the ban.
Sonam Kapoor-starrer Neerja suffered a similar fate recently. Even though the movie was not banned, it had its import authorisation certificate revoked by the commerce ministry of Pakistan.
Expected to release on February 19, Ishq Forever features an ensemble cast of actors Lisa Ray, Ruhi Singh, Javed Jaffrey and Krishna Chaturvedi.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 20th, 2016.
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