Mute ‘cow’ in Amartya docu: Censor

‘Gujarat’, ‘Hindutva view of India’ and ‘Hindu India’ were asked to be muted

Kolkata, July 12: The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has verbally communicated to a filmmaker to mute four words including ‘cow’ in his documentary on Amartya Sen, the director said.

The four words CBFC’s regional office here wanted to be muted are ‘Gujarat’, ‘Cow’, ‘Hindutva view of India’ and ‘Hindu India’, Suman Ghosh, director of the documentary The Argumentative Indian, said.

“After sitting for three hours at the Censor Board office in Kolkata, during which my documentary was screened and the members scrutinised every single shot, I was verbally told on Tuesday night to mute four words ‘Gujarat’, ‘Cow’, ‘Hindutva view of India’ and ‘Hindu India’ for getting U/A certificate,” Mr Gosh said.

“I expressed my inability to them,” he said.

Taking out certain words from the discussion between Mr Sen and the interviewer, economist Kaushik Basu, would remove the soul of the documentary, Mr Ghosh said.

“I am waiting for their reply and whether they will send the film to review committee. In any situation my response will be the same,” he said.

Contacted, a member of the CBFC here said, “Nothing to comment to the media on what the director said.

In the documentary, Mr Sen speaks of social choice theory, development economics, philosophy and the rise of right wing nationalism across the world including India.

It has been made over a span of 15 years from 2002 and is made as a conversation between Mr Sen and his student, Mr Basu. - PTI