Kerala HC snub to Centre: Screen S Durga at IFFI
Kerala high court on Tuesday allowed the screening of Malayalam movie ‘S Durga’ at the ongoing 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) at Goa.
A single bench gave the verdict after the film’s director Sanal Kumar Sasidharan moved the court following the information and broadcasting ministry’s decision to pull out the film from IFFI jury-suggested list for the Indian Panorama section.
Filmmaker Sujoy Ghosh had resigned as head of the jury following the controversy over the removal of S Durga and Marathi film Nude from the final selection.
Reacting to the high court verdict the director said it was a victory of “creativity and truth.”
The I&B ministry contended in court that the original title
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:The
(Sexy Durga) was offensive and the director had sent an uncensored version of the movie to the committee on the basis of which the selection was made.
But the court rejected the ministry claim, saying since the film had already received U/A certificate from the Censor Board of Film Certification (CBFC) the ministry can’t raise objections at this stage.
The director said I&B officials arrived at the decision going by the title of the movie, which had been modified. The officials have not seen or understood the context and setting of the film, he said in his petition.
Later the court rejected the objections raised by the ministry and held that the CBFC certified version of the movie was entitled to be screened.