Censor Board denies nod for Malayalam movie on JNU agitation
Thiruvananthapuram: Malayalam film 'Varthamanam', set in the backdrop of students protest held in Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi early this year, has been denied permission for screening by the Censor Board of Film Certification's (CBFC) regional office here.
Directed by noted filmmaker Sidhartha Siva with award- winning actress Parvathy Thiruvoth in the lead role, the movie revolves around the journey of a Keralite woman who goes to the JNU campus from the home state for her research studies.
Aryadan Shoukath, the film's producer-script-writer, said the CBFC officials here did not point out any reason for denying the certification.
He also said the movie would be submitted to the revising committee of the Censor Board in Mumbai for certification this week itself.
"The CBFC officials here just informed us that the film has to be submitted to the revising committee. We still do not know why the movie is denied the certification," Shoukath, also a Congress leader, told PTI.
The award-winning script writer said he had carried out several months of research and studies before penning the script and spent several days in Delhi to get first-hand experience of the culture and lifestyle in JNU campus.
"We cannot send the movie for any award this time if we do not get the Censor Board clearance before December 31," he said.
Shoukath suspected that the nod for screening was denied on political grounds citing a recent tweet of a censor board member, who is also the state vice president ofSC Morcha of the BJP.
"Adv V Sandeep Kumar, a censor board member, recently tweeted that the permission was denied as Aryadan Shoukath was its script writer and producer.
Now a days Censor Board has several political appointees who have no basic knowledge of cinema," he said.
Shoukath, the other day, also uploaded on his Facebook page the screenshot of the controversial tweet of the regional censor Board member.
In his tweet, which was found removed later, Sandeep Kumar had said that he, as a member of the Board, was opposed to giving nod for the movie.
"As a member of the Censor Board, I saw the movie Varthamanam. The theme was the persecution of Muslims and Dalits in the JNU agitation. I opposed it.
Because Arydan Shoukath was its script writer and producer. Of course, the theme of the film was anti-national," the tweet said.
Violence broke out at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus early in January this year as masked men armed with sticks and rods attacked students and teachers protesting the fee hike and damaged property on the campus, prompting the administration to call in the police which conducted a flag march.
Coming down heavily on him, Shoukath, in his FB post, sought to know how a movie would become anti-national if it speaks about the students' agitation in Delhi campus or the democratic movements in the country.
"We are still living in India which is a democratic, secular and socialist country.
Is it based on the clan and race of the script-writer that a film is given a nod for screening? The undeclared emergency situation in the cultural sector cannot be accepted," the script-writer's FB post said.
Film sources here told PTI that when two censor board members, who are from the film industry, strongly supported the movie and wanted to give it a nod for screening, two others, who are political nominees, objected to it.
When contacted, the censor board officials here were unavailable for a comment.
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Will end economic disaster of Kamala Harris, launch brand new Trump economic miracle: Donald Trump
Washington (PTI): Describing the economic policies of Vice President Kamala Harris as a disaster, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Friday said he would launch a brand new economic miracle after he wins the elections.
Trump promised to build American, buy American, and hire American.
"We will end Kamala's economic disaster and launch a brand-new Trump economic miracle," Trump said at a campaign rally in Detroit, Michigan, a battleground State where he is slated to hold his last rally on Monday night.
He said Harris' failed economic agenda wiped out nearly 30,000 private sector jobs just recently, and nearly 50,000 manufacturing jobs just over the last short period of time. "You lost 50,000 manufacturing jobs."
Trump alleged that under Harris' "nation-wrecking policies, the American worker is absolutely drowning. ‘You're drowning".
"Kamala is a radical left Marxist, rated even worse than crazy Bernie Sanders and Pocahontas herself. She destroyed our economy. She was an original creator of the Defund the Police movement. Anybody who wants to defund the police for even one week is not worthy of being President of the United States," Trump said.
"Kamala vowed to abolish ICE. She pledged to confiscate your guns... she even called for free sex changes for illegal aliens in detention. All at taxpayer expense. But perhaps most significant of all, she lied about working at McDonald's. She never worked," he said.
"With your vote, this November, we are going to fire Kamala and we are going to save America. We will cut your taxes, end inflation, slash your prices, raise your wages. and bring thousands and thousands of factories back to America and back to Detroit, Michigan," he said.
He promised, "I will end the war in Ukraine. Would have never started if I was president. I will stop the chaos in the Middle East. Would have never happened October 7th. And I will prevent World War III from happening," he said.
The former president said his administration will crush violent crime and give police the support, protection, resources, and respect that they so dearly deserve.
"We will strengthen and modernise our military. We will build a missile defense shield, the biggest in the world, all over our country, made in the USA, much of it made in Michigan. We will rebuild our cities, including our capital in Washington, D.C., making them safe, clean, and beautiful again. Again, our cities are a mess. They're a mess, a crime-ridden mess," he said.
"We will teach our children to love our country, to honour our history, and to always respect our great American flag. I'm going to put a bill in. If you burn the American flag, you get one year in jail. It is just happened a few weeks ago in Washington. They're burning American flags all over the place. We will get critical race theory and transgender insanity out of our schools. We ill keep men out of women's sports," he said
He said he will defend religious liberty and restore free speech.
"And I will defend the right to keep and bear arms... our Second Amendment, which is under siege. After years of building up foreign nations, defending foreign borders, and protecting foreign lands, we are finally going to build up our country, defend our borders, and protect our citizens and our lands," he said.
"We ill stop illegal immigration once and for all. We will not be invaded. We will not be occupied. We will not be overrun. We will not be conquered. We will be a free, proud nation once again. We're going to be free and proud. Everyone will prosper. Every family will thrive. And every day will be filled with opportunity and hope. And most importantly, it's going to be filled again with the American Dream," Trump said.
