'If kids watch porn, they might turn into psychos like Abhay!'

Subhash K Jha

Bitter words were exchanged over Hey! Ram, between Kamal Haasan and the censors.

Now, the actor is full of praise for their handling of his new venture, Abhay.

The bilingual Abhay, featuring Kamal Haasan, is about a psychotic man's battle with the world at large.

The censor board has given the film -- its Tamil version is called Aalavandhan -- an Adults Only certificate and has asked for a few minor changes.

"I'm very happy -- Abhay isn't a film for young viewers anyway," Kamal Haasan says. "The censors have been very fair to us. Some expletives have gone. The word 'bitch' had to be replaced by 'witch'. I don't mind such monitoring.

"I'm pleased with the maturity shown by the censor board."

Given his experience with the censors over Hey! Ram, the actor was perhaps a little surprised.

"Last time, for my Hey! Ram, they not only wanted cuts that would have mutilated my film, they were also not open to any discussion on the matter. What's more, they went on television and gave away the story of the film," he recalls.

"Abhay has been treated far more kindly."

"The censor board is a necessary moral checkpost," Kamal Haasan says. "It must tell writers and filmmakers where to draw the line. After all, pornographic content is interpolated by unscrupulous producers and exhibitors into films that are meant for universal exhibition.

"I'm not a prude. I'm not against people making love on screen. But if children in this country watch pornography, they might turn into psychos like my character in Abhay," he adds.

The chairperson of the Central Board for Film Certification, Asha Parekh, is thrilled with the kind words coming the way of what is perhaps the country's most maligned monitoring agency.

"At least one responsible film person, and a brilliant actor at that, has expressed approval for us. Otherwise all we get are brickbats from producers and directors who don't seem to understand their responsibilities as creative artists and our functions as a moral monitoring agency," she says.

"Look at Rajkumar Santoshi's Lajja. It was passed for adult viewing. But children all over the country saw the film," says the actress of yesteryear. "Theatre owners don't seem to understand the importance of a censor certificate. There's no way we can stop children from watching films that are unsuitable for them. That's why I'm so strict about the language used in our films.

"Since young viewers are exposed to every kind of movie-making experience, regardless of the censorial grading, sometimes I feel we need to be even more strict with the language and content of our films," Asha Parekh says.

"You'll be shocked to know that some of the (Hindi) films we passed for all ages were seen fit for adult viewing by the Australian Censor Board," she says.

"I don't mind passing even X-rated films provided theatre owners implement the censor certificate strictly. That seems improbable. In some areas, pornographic content is interpolated into films after they are censored," says Parekh.

"We've tackled this problem through policing agencies in large cities like Madras, Delhi and Bombay. Now we plan to go into the smaller cities," she adds.

Indo-Asian News Service