Bollywood may not have been very hot on Kamal Khan's Deshdrohi , but the industry certainly is very happy with the court's verdict that prevents the Maharashtra state from curbing a film-maker's freedom of expression.
Kamal Khan, the producer-actor of the film, said, I am happy that the court has rapped the state by calling the ban illegal and said freedom of expression of a film-maker should not be curbed as the censor board has cleared the movie and given it a
`U' certificate. The court has also said the government misused Section 651 under the pretext that the film would cause law and order problem. He now plans to start the publicity for the film, which will be release on January 23.
Vinayak Azad, regional officer, censor board, said, The film was cleared with a `U' certificate by the appellate tribunal. The state had imposed the ban and it's got nothing to do with us.
Deshdrohi is a film based on north Indians migrating to Mumbai which had created a controversy in the state. The Maharashtra government had imposed a two-month ban on the film fearing backlash from the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena
(MNS) and others if it was allowed to be released in the present format.
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