Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 25, 2017)

On Friday, the division bench of Kerala High Court, comprising of Acting Chief Justice Antony Dominic and Justice A Muhamed Mustaque, declined to stay a single-bench order directing that Sanal Kumar Sashidharan’s thriller, S Durga, be screened in the Indian Panorama section of the ongoing 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa. However, later in the afternoon, the case was called back to the chambers.

The order passed in the pre-noon session was recalled and modified. The court has now directed the jury to view the censored version of the Malayalam film and decide if it should be exhibited at the festival. However, it was clarified in the modified order that there is no stay on the directions of the single bench. On Thursday, in its appeal to the division bench, the Information & Broadcasting Ministry had contended that though a 13-member jury had selected the film, it had been screened without censor exemption, as required by the Indian Panorama regulation in the absence of certification from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

Playing the card of practical impossibility, it was also contended by the Ministry that inclusion of the film would disrupt the schedule of IFFI at this late date, which comes to a close on November 28. Earlier, the single bench had rejected this argument and observed that if the jury found the uncertified version eligible for exhibition, then the certified version would be all the more eligible.

Rahul Rawail, the current jury chairperson (brought in after Sujoy Ghosh, along with two jury members, Apurva Asrani and Gyan Correa, tendered his resignation over the exclusion of S Durga and Nude from the final list of 26 films issued by the Ministry), was noncommittal on the subject. “You are the first person to tell me about this. I will wait for the Ministry to apprise me of the situation.

I don’t wish to comment as of now,” he said. Two other jury members, Nikkhil Advani and Ruchi Narain, echoed his views. “I am waiting to be officially conatcted. But if the court has directed us to see the film again, the jury is legally bound to do so,” said Ruchi, while Nikhil reiterated, “I will wait for the Ministry and the present chairperson to inform me on the development.” As of now it is not clear if the earlier 13-member jury or the current 10-member jury will have to see the film.

With just four days left for the festival to end, it would be impossible for all the members, who are across the country and even abroad, to meet and debate the issue. Can Sasidharan send them a link of the film to view individually and mail their decision? Will the final decision rest on a unanimous vote or will a majority decision suffice? These are all unanswered questions at the moment.

Sasidharan, who was in Australia for the Asia Pacific Award for which he was nominated in the Achievement in Direction category for S Durga, stated in a Facebook post early on Friday, “The government of India has every right legally to file an appeal against the order of the Honourable Kerala High Court directing it to screen S Durga in IFFI. But it is petty from the part of a Government to declare a war against its citizen, an artist for the reason of making a film. Union of India Vs Sanal Kumar Sasidharan is a symbol. This is a beginning of a new era in the history of Indian democracy.

The only idea is to delay the matter further and to avoid the screening of the film in IFFI at any cost. If all the legal battles I won, I fear what kind of weapon the state is going to use against me. Will it rethink the self moratorium in using those mighty warheads? (sic).” Rajshri Deshpande, the film’s lead actress, was recently quoted as saying that the film is every woman’s story, played out every day. “There’s nothing in the film that will hurt anybody’s religious sentiments. I am really requesting, please watch the film and then decide,” she urged. Festival director Sunit Tandon and Steering Committee member Vani Tripathi Tikoo did not wish to comment on the matter.

THE TIMES OF INDIA (November 22, 2017)

The Kerala high court on Tuesday ordered that Malayalam film ‘S Durga’, earlier called ‘Sexy Durga’, be allowed to be screened at the ongoing 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa.

A HC issued the order to the I&B ministry on a petition filed by the film’s director Sanal Kumar Sasidharan challenging its exclusion from IFFI, which began on November 20. The ministry had told the HC that ‘S Durga’ did not have censor board clearance and there were complaints that it offended religious sentiments as ‘Durga’ is the name of a goddess. The IFFI jury had shortlisted it without CBFC certification, it argued.

No one can object to ‘S Durga’, says HC
'Sexy Durga’ was the first Indian movie to win the Tiger Award for budding filmmakers at Rotterdam. The Kerala HC said the film had got CBFC certification on October 10 by changing the title to ‘S Durga’. A certified version of the movie should be allowed to be screened as no objection had been raised regarding the certification, it held.

Lead actor of ‘S Durga’ S Kannan said the “court has stood with the right side” and the festival organizers should also screen ‘Nude’. Festival director Sunit Tandon declined to comment on the status of the film’s inclusion, saying, “I am not appropriately placed to talk.”

"The court is the only hope for people like us. They (makers of ‘Nude’) didn’t go to court. They made that mistake. But the film should also be screened here. Because the jury had unanimously selected both movies,” Kannan told TOI.

The ministry had also contended that the petitioner could not challenge the rejection in the Kerala HC as the festival was being conducted in Goa and the ministry’s decision was taken in New Delhi. But, the court ruled in favour of the petitioner’s argument that the certification was made at CBFC’s regional office in Thiruvananthapuram.

Director Sasidharan told PTI, “I am very happy. It’s a victory of cinema and democracy. People stood by us. The chairman resigned, other jury members also resigned”
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Mihir Bhanage and Dean Lobo (BOMBAY TIMES; November 22, 2017)

On Tuesday afternoon, Sanal Kumar Sasidharan tweeted about his film S Durga being screened at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI)’s 48th edition. After his film was rejected from being screened in the Indian Panorama section, Sasidharan had informed us about petitioning in the Kerala High Court against it.

A week after the petition, Sasidharan and his team are celebrating a win. The Kerala HC, hearing the petition, has directed the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) to screen the film at the festival. When contacted, an elated Sasidharan, who is currently in Australia, said, “I would call it a win for cinema and all those championing the cause of artistic freedom. A lot of people have put in their hard work and time for the film and the court’s directive reinstates our belief in democracy and the judiciary.”

Justice K Vinod Chandran, the judge who heard the matter, overruled the objections raised by the ministry and asked for the film to be screened with CBFC certificate. Over the last few days, plenty has been written and spoken about S Durga and the Marathi film Nude’s exclusion from the list finalised by the 13-member jury for the Indian Panorama section. As a mark of protest, director Sujoy Ghosh, the head of the jury and co-juror, writer-editor Apurva Asrani even stepped down from their respective positions.

Sasidharan adds, “My lawyer told me about the decision. I am not sure when the film will be screened. Also, I won’t be able to attend the festival as I am not in the country.”

Confirming the same, filmmaker Satarupa Sanyal, an IFFI jury member, said, “There’s no news about the screening at the festival yet. Programmes are going on at the venue as per schedule. However, now that the screening has been ordered by the Kerala HC, arrangements will have to be made. S Durga and Nude were dropped without any explanation. So the court’s decision is a welcome one.”

When BT spoke to Apurva Asrani, he said, “As someone who loves good cinema, it was heart-breaking to learn that Nude and S Durga had been dropped from the final list of the Indian Panorama. I just silently stepped aside as a jury member because the final list didn’t reflect what we signed off on. There was never any intention to get political about it or to point fingers, so I can’t say where and why it got dropped. I congratulate Sanal for believing in his film and for believing enough in IFFI as a festival to fight to get S Durga screened.”
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Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 22, 2017)

Ten days after the Information & Broadcasting Ministry dropped Sanal Kumar Sasidharan's Malayalam thriller, S Durga, from the final list of films to be screened at International Film Festivals of India's (IFFI) Indian Panorama section, a single judge bench of the Kerala High Court has directed the organisers to exhibit the film at the festival. Justice K Vinod Chandran, who considered the matter, overruled the objections raised by the I & B Ministry which had contended that, among others, the original title of the film, Sexy Durga, offended religious sentiments. Sasidharan, the film's director, wrote on his Facebook page yesterday that the court's decision was a victory for cinema. "...This is the victory of our democracy. This is the victory of those people from the jury who sacrificed. Cheers India! (sic)," his post said.

Mirror was the first to report about the I & B Ministry's decision, which overrode the choices of the 13-member jury of the Indian Panorama section. Apart from S Durga, Ravi Jadhav's Marathi film, Nude, also faced the axe. This led to the resignation of jury chairman, filmmaker Sujoy Ghosh, and two other members, National Award-winning editor Apurva Asrani and writer-director Gyan Correa. Asrani told Mirror he was happy for the film's director and happier for Indian cinema "in general".

"Films like S Durga that make a strong case for women's safety, while also using ingenious storytelling methods, are hard to come by. I was gutted when it slipped through our fingers and resigned because I felt we had failed these films. But Sanal's persistence paid off and I'm thrilled that delegates of India's most prestigious film festival will get a chance to see this film. I strongly believe if our respected I & B Minister (Smriti Irani), who is an empowered woman herself, watches the film, she will go all out to support it." Sasidharan moved the Kerala High Court against the decision on November 14, and when his case did not come up for hearing by the single bench on November 16, he filed a writ petition with the Division Bench of the Kerala HC.

After referring to the statements filed by the Central Government Counsel and the petitioner, the Division Bench made two key observations. First, the I&B Ministry had behaved in a high-handed manner, and two, Sasidharan should have been given an opportunity to screen the censored version of S Durga for the jury and the Ministry. It suggested that the single bench list the petition and give Sasidharan a hearing by November 20 — the opening day of IFFI this year. The case finally came up for hearing yesterday. "It's a moral victory for the film," said Sasidharan's advocate Manu Sebastian.

IFFI officials told Mirror they had not received any official intimation about the court's decision. "I came to know about the issue via media," said Vani Tripathi Tikoo, a member of IFFI's steering committee. Sunit Tandon, festival director, IFFI, said, "I have nothing to say for now. I, too, got to know about it only a while ago from news reports." Six of the Panorama section's jury members — Hari Vishwanathan, Satarupa Sanyal, Ruchi Narain, Gopi Desai, Suresh Heblikar and Sachin Chatte — had written to Smriti Irani to voice their concern with regard to the exclusion of the two films without any intimation, discussion or recourse to the jury, which has a final say, as per Indian Panorama regulations. Pointing out that their written correspondence to the Directorate of Film Festivals and the National Film Development Corporation of India went unheeded, the members urged the minister to give the films under dispute a fair chance to be viewed. IFFI ends on November 28.
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Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; November 22, 2017)

Sanal Kumar Sasidharan’s battle came to a fitting end yesterday. The Kerala High Court yesterday directed the Information & Broadcasting Ministry and the International Film Festival of India ( IFFI) to screen his Malayalam film, S Durga, which was dropped from the film festival’s line- up of movies despite being selected by the Indian Panorama jury. In his judgment, Justice K Vinod Chandran deemed that the CBFC certified version of the film was entitled to be screened.

Overjoyed by the ruling, Sasidharan, who is currently attending Asia Pacific Screen Awards in Brisbane for the same film, told mid-day, “I am not the one to usually celebrate victories. But I can’t stay away from being ecstatic about this one. This is the victory of cinema and of our democracy.”

S Durga was one of the two films that were unceremoniously dropped from the line-up on November 11, days before the film festival was to kick off. Sujoy Ghosh had stepped down as the jury chief as a mark of protest.

Grateful that many had voiced their protest against IFFI’s dictatorial ways, Sasidharan added, “This is the victory of those people from the jury who sacrificed for the film. This is a message that champions freedom of speech.”

He doesn’t deny that freedom of expression is finding itself increasingly under threat, citing Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati as the latest example where artistic expression is being choked. “But this ruling reinstates my faith in the judiciary.”

Despite international acclaim, Sanal Kumar Sasidharan’s S Durga has had its share of controversy in India. Originally called Sexy Durga, the Malayalam film ran into censor trouble and was cleared only after 21 audio cuts and a revised title. Now the I&B ministry has abruptly dropped it from the list selected for screening at the International Film Festival of India, overruling the jury. The filmmaker tells Sonam Joshi why he has decided to challenge the decision in court
Sonam Joshi (THE TIMES OF INDIA; November 19, 2017)

S Durga follows the harrowing experiences of a runaway couple after they hitch a ride with two small-time gangsters. Why name the woman Durga?
The idea came to me after the Delhi gang rape in 2012. We say that we treat women as goddesses, yet we don’t even treat them as individuals. If Durga is in a temple, then people will worship her, but if the same Durga is out on the streets, what will people do? This problematic mentality comes from a male-dominated society and is the cause of violence against women. The film is about gender and power politics, and how those who have power use it on the powerless.

You chose a provocative title. What did it convey and how important was it for the film?
The title has a lot of meaning for the film. I was trying to put words which are contradictory, just like the film has so many contradictions. A lot of people came to me and said you can’t put the goddess in your film. If they have a problem, I invite them to see the film. It is not defaming the goddess. For understanding art, you need to see art, but these people are just reading the title. Without seeing it, how can you say that it is about the goddess?

You’ve also received death threats. Did you expect such extreme reactions?
I could anticipate it. When I gave the title, someone told me I’m going to be in trouble. I had said that if someone protests about the film, let us show it to them and converse. But if someone cuts my throat, what is the point of debate? All kinds of vandalism is going on in India, including what is happening with Padmavati and Nude. We are becoming like Saudi Arabia or Iran. Different cultures have co-existed in India, but can we claim that we are an open-minded country now? We had Khajuraho and Kamasutra. Now we can’t talk about sex, and the word sexy is abusive. In the last five years, this fanaticism has been rising. It is getting very hard to live freely as an artist in India.

What cuts had the censor board asked you to make, and why didn’t you challenge it?
The 21 mutes were for small, abusive words in Malayalam that we use every day. These words are not related to the goddess. There are no visual cuts. The censor board said the word sexy in the title can’t be allowed because there are thousands of complaints against it. I could have appealed against it but it would have taken time. I also wanted people to watch the film and thought I shouldn’t stand between the j movie and the audience just because of the title. I didn’t want a controversy.

Have you been told why the film was dropped from IFFI?
I have not received any email or communication from them. I have given Rs 10,000 as jury fee so the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF) is bound to inform me if the film is selected or rejected. I only came to know that my film had been selected after seeing news reports that it had been dropped. I submitted the uncensored version because there is a government rule that you can submit a film even without a censor certificate. The jury saw this version. If the film is selected, the film festival needs a special exemption from the I&B ministry to screen it. If it has not given the exemption, even then the DFF is required to inform me. I mailed the I&B minister asking for an explanation but haven’t got any reply.

Why did you decide to file a petition in the Kerala High Court now?
I’m looking for justice. My petition requests the court to implement the jury’s decision and order the DFF to screen my film. Nowadays the judiciary is our only hope. Democracy is being used as a tool to enable fascism. If the government and its ministers treat it like a dictatorship, what is the meaning of saying we are citizens of India? We can say we are in the kingdom of Smriti Irani and Modi. If the system appoints the jury, they should give it some respect. If I agreed to all the changes and got a certificate, I am legally entitled to screen the film. Somebody said that it is a government-run festival, but who is the government? It is an official body elected by the people of India. We are the government, we need to know what is happening.

What next?
I am planning to release the film. People need to see it and understand that it is not about the goddess; it is about the people who claim they are saving the goddess. I am ready to give it to them to screen it for free. I am also working on a film about social censorship, freedom of expression and cultural fascism. It is about my life and what I am going through right now.

Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 18, 2017)

The controversy over the dropping of two films — Sanal Kumar Sashidharan’s Malayalam film S Durga and Ravi Jadhav’s Marathi film Nude — from the list of 26 films to be screened in the Indian Panorama section of the 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) led to Sanal moving the Single Bench of the Kerala High Court on November 14. Three jury members — Chairperson Sujoy Ghosh, Apurva Asrani and Gyan Correa have subsequently resigned, while Sanal filed a writ petition with the Division Bench after his case did not come up for hearing on November 16.

After referring to the statements filed by the Central Government Counsel and the petitioner, Mirror has learnt that in the pre-noon session on Friday, the Division Bench heard the case and made two key observations. First, the Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry had behaved in a high-handed and arbitrary manner. Second, that Sanal should have been given an opportunity to screen the censored version of S Durga for the jury and the ministry.

Admitting that dropping S Durga from the film list on the grounds that the jury had seen the pre-censored version was unfair, the Division Bench has suggested that the Single Bench list the petition and give them a hearing by November 20 — the opening day of IFFI.

According to a witness, “If the Single Bench of the Kerala High Court deems that the film can be screened, S Durga might get screened over the course of the eight-day festival.”

Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; August 2, 2017)

Mid-Day had earlier reported that even though Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) Chief Pahlaj Nihalani’s high-handedness with filmmakers had spurred murmurs of dissent among board members, a contempt of court order issued against him was being cited as the final nail in the coffin that could lead to his expulsion. An 18-member team of the CBFC had to travel to Thiruvananthapuram to view Malayalam film K A Bodyscapes, after Nihalani's refusal to certify it for several months had compelled the Kerala High Court to issue a notice against him. This was the fourth review held for the Board in the last one year.

“Nihalani and the CBFC are being unreasonable. They don’t want my film to release,” K A Bodyscapes’s director Jayan Cherian told mid-day from New York, after the film, which hinges on homosexuality, was refused a certificate yet again last week. “The members who watched it last Friday are divided in their opinion. Nine members are ready to pass it with a few cuts, but the rest don’t want to certify the film.”

Cherian said that the CBFC attorney requested the court two weeks’ time to arrive at a conclusion and provide an explanation for the delay. The film shows the relationship between two men against a series of real events that shook the conservative Kerala society prompting closeted Kerala gays to come out in support. “The Board is trying to mute dissenting opinions of artistes. It is unfortunate to see the growing intolerance and lack of freedom of expression,” Cherian lamented after the court decided to hear the case on August 16.

This is the second time that the CBFC has sought time to announce its decision on the certification of the film. They had previously requested the Kerala HC for a two-month extension to plan this screening, citing lack of funds as reason for not holding the preview. Cherian said he first held the screening for Nihalani in February after A Prathiba, CBFC regional officer, Thiruvananthapuram, refused to certify the film citing objectionable content in July 2016. “Nihalani and his team refused to certify the film in February stating that it denigrates female characters.”

The court ordered the chief to give his verdict in May, even sending reminders subsequently. But, when Nihalani failed to pay heed to the orders, a contempt of court notice was issued. When contacted, Nihalani told mid-day, “I am not answerable. It shouldn’t concern you if I have seen the film twice or five times.”

MID-DAY (July 26, 2017)

Ever since he took office as chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification in 2015, Pahlaj Nihalani has come under the scanner for his censoring actions, with a majority of industry folk citing his decisions unwarranted.

Rumours doing the rounds that the Board will replace the infamous chief comes as no surprise then, given that he also recently attracted the wrath of cinephiles and filmmakers for his stance against the “lady-oriented” Lipstick Under My Burkha and Madhur Bhandarkar’s Indu Sarkar.

While Nihalani has often shielded his decisions behind the archaic Cinematograph Act, the chief has now apparently come in the line of fire for contempt of court. A member of the Board, on condition of anonymity, tells mid-day that the Kerala High Court has issued a notice against the CBFC after Nihalani refused to certify the film, K A Bodyscapes (see picture below), putting the filmmaker in a soup for nine months.

The source says, “A screening was held for the CBFC in February, following which Pahlaj and his team refused to certify the film. The HC ordered him to give his verdict in May, and sent subsequent reminders.” When Nihalani failed to pay heed to the orders, a contempt of court issue was served. The team even requested for a two-months extension to due to “lack of funding to arrange the screening and the cost of bringing all the Board members together.”

Speculations suggest, the screening will happen in Thiruvananthapuram on  28 July. In the subsequent Board meeting, scheduled for the same day, Nihalani may be asked to step down. Our calls to Nihalani, went unanswered. A source says, “If he’s asked to step down, he won’t relent.”