Censor Board asks for a song from Ram Gopal Varma's next to be deleted after addl CP allegedly raised objections
The Censor Board appears to have bowed to the needs of Mumbai Police while snipping off a song from Ram Gopal Varma’s Department, set to release on Friday.
During a different screening organised around 11 am yesterday at Eros cinema hall, Churchgate, additional commissioner of police Deven Bharti reportedly asked the board to take away a song from the flick that refers to cops as bhais.
What’s the problem?
The film relies at the politics between the police force and the underworld. So, the board had also invited Bharti. In line with RGV production’s sources, the highest cop objected to a song, titled Mumbai Police Sabka Bhai.
Bharti protested the use of the term bhai and asked for the song to be far from the film. The board members asked Bharti to present them his objection in writing, which he did. After that the board chairman asked for the views of alternative members.
Cut it out
A little later Varma appeared. The board members told him about Bharti’s objection. Varma clarified that the song relies at the film’s story. The following line of the song was Laal batti aati hai, sab ki p**t jaati hai.
Varma was not in favour of deleting the song. However the board members were reportedly unanimous “The board members seemed helpless. They asked for the song to be cut,” said an RGV production’s spokesperson.
Amitabh Bachchan and Sanjay Dutt play important characters within the film, that is in keeping with how underworld gangsters used the police’s ‘encounter kings’ to complete one another.
“There is nothing wrong in calling Mumbai Police ‘bhai’. It means brother. We're all brothers,” said an IPS officer, laughing off the problem. The board has given the film an “A” certificate.
Producers of the film refused to talk at the issue. “No comment,” was the stock answer.
Despite several attempts, Commissioner of Police Arup Patnaik and addl CP Bharti weren't available for comments. Bharti didn't reply to our text messages.
“I think this was not the non-public view of Deven Bharti. This was the departmental view. I WILL BE ABLE TO comment only after verifying the truth,” said addl CP Sunil Paraskar, spokesperson, Mumbai Police.
Courtesy: Mid-Day.com
