Cinematograph Bill hits freedom of expression: Suriya

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Days after Kamal Haasan condemned the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting’s proposed Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, the new amendments to The Cinematograph Act, 1954, many other Tamil film personalities have come out against the bill calling it a “blow to freedom of expression.”

The implementation of the act with new amendments will empower the union government to recertify or re-censor films that have already been certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

Actor Suriya, on Twitter, wrote, “Law is to protect freedom of expression and not to strangle it.” He also shared the link to a draft opposing the bill and requested the public to endorse it or make individual suggestions to the ministry. The actor also urged the people to act fast. Similarly, director Karthik Subbaraj also shared the draft on the micro-blogging site and wrote, “The proposed amendment to the Cinematograph Act, if implemented, will be a big blow to freedom of Speech in Art.”

Director Gautam Menon, Mani Ratnam, actor-filmmaker Prakash Raj, director Vetri Maaran, cinematographer PC Sreeram, and actor Pranita Subhash are among celebrities from the south to voice out against the bill.The filmmakers’ petition has so far received more than a thousand signatures. Many other filmmakers from across the country like Anurag Kashyap, Hansal Mehta, and Zoya Akhtar have endorsed this open letter.

This proposed bill of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting comes just two months after the abolishment of the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT), a statutory body, that came to the rescue of filmmakers, who sought to challenge the decisions of CBFC.