Subhash K Jha (DNA; February 24, 2016)

Hansal Mehta, who had vowed to not take a single cut in his film on homophobia, and the violation of an individual’s space, has agreed to the cuts recommended by the Censor Board Of Film Certification (CBFC) rather than fight it out with the Tribunal. Says a source close to the development, “There was no time for Hansal and his producers Eros to wait for the Tribunal to view and clear Aligarh. Instead, Hansal has agreed to take the cuts recommended by the CBFC. These include shots of Manoj Bajpayee dozing off while court proceedings are on. These according to the CBFC amounted to contempt of court.”

Earlier, Hansal had vowed to not accept a single cut, calling the censorial recommendations anti-democratic and draconian.

Says Hansal, “I had no time to fight out the cuts before the release. I withdrew the film from the Tribunal and went back to the Examining Committee. I’ve accepted the cuts that they had initially recommended and which I had rejected. Now I realise those cuts are nominal and they don’t affect the flow of my film at all. I am grateful the CBFC co-operated with me and cleared the film in time for its release.” The film has now been passed with cuts for Adult Viewing.