Ghajini

India's Censor Board passed Ghajini but not before making three cuts. The film got a U/A Certificate.

The film's director, A R Murugadoss was quite upset with the Censor Board's decision. He kept arguing that they were being too harsh on his film.

The key reason why the Censor Board made the three cuts was because they thought that the film was too violent.

The Censors objected to three scenes:

1. A man hits Asin with a rod twice, this was cut by 50%
2. Aamir Khan breaks a baddie's neck, the scene was cut by 50%
3. Aamir hits a villain with a tap and when the knob of the tap pierces the baddie's stomach, blood starts dripping from the tap.

The censors said that: Murugadoss wanted to know why we couldn't let those scenes remain as they were since he has simply made a remake and the original version had all these scenes. Murugadoss was especially particular about retaining the tap scene. We explained that we wouldn't let it go in its original state unless he was okay with an A certificate.

It's arguably the biggest box office hit of 2008 but the recent movie Ghajini is kicking up quite a storm. A storm that has ended it up in the Bombay High Court.

According to the petitioner Pratibha Nathani, the Aamir Khan starrer is sending out a wrong message. She says scenes of naked rage could have a destructive effect on impressionable young minds.

Hence Nathani has urged the court to change the film's rating from "U/A" to the adults only rating "A".

It is not only violent but the kind of violence that is shown against a woman is quite explicit. She is shown in the pool of blood after her head is hit, it is very objectionable. There are incidents in the film, which hurt you, said Pratibha Nathani, Petitioner, nutter and social activist.

After reviewing Ghajini , the censor board did delete some scenes that were part of the original Tamil film. It was only then it was given the U/A certificate. The censor board still maintains that the film can be watched under parental guidance.

We felt that the violence in this film was normal the way you find in other Hindi films, where a hero goes on to smash 50-60 people alone. So it was granted U/A certificate. It wasn't that explicit or gruesome. Two of three scenes which we found gruesome have already been deleted, said Vinayak Azad, Regional Officer, Central Board of Film Certification.

The film is based on the Hollywood psychological thriller Memento .

Update: Court Challenge

18th January 2009. See article from topnews.in

The Bombay High Court has adjourned by a week the hearing of an appeal in response to public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the Censor Board's decision seeking an ‘A’ certification for Ghajini.

The petition, filed by Pratibha Nathani, a social activist and a professor of Political Science professor at St Xavier’s College, said that the film is sending out a wrong message as the gruesome aggression portrayed in the scenes could have a negative impact on children.

Hence Pratibha urged Bombay High Court to change the movie’s rating from ‘U/A’ to ‘Adult.’

Padikkathavan passed UA with cuts

Based on article from sify.com

The Indian Regional Censor Board in Chennai has censored the new movie Padikkathavan .

The film has been passed with an 'UA' certificate with some cuts in the climax fight scene.

The film is now slated for release on January 14.