Thursday, January 31, 2013

Allow screening of Vishwaroopam

There must be not any ban on the film by filmmaker and the painting by the painter only because they hurt the religious sentiment of a small group of people of a particular community on the ground that if they were allowed to be screened and displayed, it will disturb law and order. Law and order is a state subject and it is the responsibility of the state government to maintain it. It must not take revenge on the filmmaker under the excuse of law and order. The government of the state can not be run according to the whims and fancies of a small group of people. Vishwaroopam is a big budget film directed and produced by a famous filmmaker and actor Kamal Hassan. It had already been given the go-ahead signal by the Film Censor Board of India. In the given situation, if the Censor Board had found anti-Muslim content, it must not have allowed it to be screened. This should be taken in top consideration that the unnecessary controversy being created over the film which has already been approved by Censor Board. The creation of an artist must not be left at the mercy of a small group of people under apprehension that if it were allowed to be displayed, it would create law and order problem. Vishwaroopam Director and Producer Kamal Hassan has mortgaged all his assets on making of the film and if it was further delayed in screening, financial pressure would automatically increase on him. India is a secular country. Its secular fabric must not be disturbed at any cost but at the same time any artist’s art should also not be made sacrificial lamb because of vote bank politics. The state government must not take the step of banning the film or any creation of the artists to appease the religious sentiment of a community. Filmmaker Kamal Haasan's relief over securing a favourable verdict from the Madras High Court on screening his film Vishwaroopam was short-lived as a division bench of the court set aside the decision Wednesday, and the few theatres willing to show it either backed out or stopped mid-way apparently due to pressure from authorities and the threat of violence. Though Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu J Jayalaliththa has said that she has no grudge against Kamal Hassan because he espoused aspiration about a TN political leader opposed to her to become PM of the nation, every one knows that it is the responsibility of the state government to maintain law and order. Law and order must not be as fragile as to be broken by broken by the small group of people's demonstration against a film. This is also not the first time that the film has been banned in apprehension of law and order breakdown by a small group of demonstrators against its screening on the one ground or the other. The government of the day must maintain law and order but not at the cost of banning the film or creation of an artist because it purportedly hurt the religious sentiment of a small group of people of a particular community.

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