Raveena Tandon on Maatr controversy: CBFC members didn't walk out or ban the fi...

Actor Raveena Tandon has denied rumours that the Central Board Of Film Certification (CBFC) has banned her film Maatr. Reports suggested that the board was not impressed with the film, which is about a mother taking revenge for her daughter’s rape. There were also rumours that the board members walked out of the film’s screening.

However, Raveena clarifies that the CBFC has been very cooperative and wanted to see the film a second time to suggest final changes and cuts. She says that the film will release on the scheduled date, April 21. “There was never a walk out. Plus, they never banned the film. I don’t think they even have the authority to ban a film according to their laws. They can refuse certification and then a filmmaker can approach the tribunal or the court. But that was not the case with my film. Since it is such a hard hitting subject, there were some women members of the board who wanted the film to go as it is and there were some men, who wanted cuts. This is why they decided to watch the film again,” says Raveena, adding that the film has been cleared now and the certificate will be handed over to the makers tomorrow.

The board has suggested some cuts, which don’t bother Raveena. “There are a few scenes which we have been asked to delete. It is a hard-hitting subject and we were expecting many more cuts. I feel it is a positive step that the CBFC has agreed to release the film. The impact of the film will still be the same even with these cuts,” says Raveena.

The actor says that although at times filmmakers have a genuine reason for going against the board, there are also times when the board has been needlessly blamed. “It is a witch-hunt...these problems with the censor board have happend so many times. A lot of people do this to give publicity to their films too. Of course, some people have a genuine reason,” she says.

However, Raveena doesn’t blame the CBFC for its stringent guidelines. “Look at what happened in Chennai. A girl eloped with her boyfriend because she saw this in a film. The Chennai court has questioned the Censor Board for this. This is not fair. How is the board responsible? They are held up for such things, which is why I don’t blame them for the decisions they take sometimes,” she says.

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