In what the clergy and Catholic groups are calling a victory, objectionable scenes in Kamaal Dhamaal Malamaal (KDM), a Hindi comedy film directed by Priyadarshan which released on Friday, have been dropped by the producers.
According to Judith Monteiro, secretary, Association of Concerned Catholics (AOCC), representatives of Maharashtra Christian Youth Forum (MCYF), Catholic Secular Forum (CSF), Catholic Residents Organization for Social Services (CROSS) and Catholics for Preservation of Faith (CPF) saw KDM at Paradise Theatre Mahim.
“The objectionable scenes that we’d pointed out to the Censor Board are not there in the film,” she told DNA. Hoping that this will work as a deterrent for those film-makers who stereotype Catholics, she said. Our demand for the resignation of those who passed the film without relevant cuts still holds good. We await an apology from the producers, Percept Pictures, for their sacrilegious promos on YouTube. We look forward to our demand that a representative appointed by the Archdiocese of Mumbai be nominated on the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to oversee films concerning the community be fulfilled soon.”
MCYF general secretary, Agnelo Fernandes said, “We want to thank the Union minister of information and broadcasting, Ambika Soni, for this prompt action. Censor Board CEO Prajakta Thakur shouldn’t be allowed to continue its head.”
The Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Mumbai said, “I’m happy the scenes were deleted. I hope the Censor Board maintains caution in the future while granting certification.”
General secretary of CSF Joseph Dias, said they will take up similar instances, irrespective of which religion is shown in bad light.
A delegation of Catholic groups along with Fr Reuben Tellis, representative of the Archdiocese of Mumbai, had visited the Censor Board office and demanded the deletion of the objectionable scenes. A protest and prayer procession to the Indian Motion Picture Producers and Film Makers Combine office had earlier demanded the resignation of CBFC chairperson Leela Samson.
