Censor board demands 300 cuts from 'Padmavat'

The historical drama is all set to release on January 25

MUMBAI: Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chairperson Prasoon Joshi on Tuesday refuted a report that the "modifications" demanded by the censor board in the historical drama, Padmavat have resulted in 300 cuts.

"The makers have submitted the final film with agreed five modifications. These modifications have tried to incorporate observations and suggestions given by the advisory panel and also in keeping with the sentiments of society. This has already been communicated by CBFC and a U/A certificate has been given to the film.


"CBFC's process is complete and any further news about cuts is absolutely untrue. Let's refrain from utilising CBFC's name unnecessarily," said Joshi.

A daily reported that to suit the demands of the CBFC, "one of Bollywood's leading directors was sitting in the editing suite at Rajkamal Studio at Parel, turning the specific locations of his magnum opus into la la land".

The report further read that Padmavat director Sanjay Leela Bhansali has been instructed to delete all references to Delhi, Chittorgarh and Mewar from the film and that "buzz is that they (the modifications) have resulted in as many as 300 cuts".

PHOTO: DEEPIKA PADUKONE/INSTAGRAM

Padmavat, which was to earlier release as Padmavati on December 1 last year, has been embroiled in a controversy over alleged distortion of historical facts.

CBFC, in consultation with a special advisory panel, saw the movie last month and decided to grant the film a U/A certificate with five modifications, including title change and two disclaimers.

The movie, starring Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor, is slated to release on January 25, but the Rajasthan government has said they won't allow it to be exhibited in the state.

The Karni Sena, a Rajput outfit, has been persistent in threatening the makers of Padmavat of dire consequences if it is released on January 25.

PHOTO: THE INDIAN EXPRESS

After this announcement, National Award-winning film-maker Sudhir Mishra has pushed the release date of his upcoming film Daas Dev to March 2. The film, featuring Richa Chadha, Aditi Rao Hydari and Rahul Bhatt, was earlier planned to release on February 16.

Mishra, who also vocally supported Padmavat, said in a statement, "The entire team is thrilled with the news of the official release of Padmavat. We have all rooted in this decision and as a fraternity are happy the film is coming to theatres soon. So in lieu of that and to ensure our film too receives its share, we considered and finalised the push to March 2. Now we are all gearing up for the new date and will put it all energies towards it".

Daas Dev is a modern take on the Bengali classic novel Devdas by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Earlier, the Padmavat director made a film on the same novel and now Mishra is giving a new take to the old story.

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