Censor board stalls Union Minister Suresh Gopi's film over use of 'Janaki' in title
The release of the Malayalam movie 'Janaki vs State of Kerala' starring Union Minister and actor Suresh Gopi, has been stalled following a demand from the Censor Board for Film Certification (CBFC) regarding a change in the film's title. As per the film's makers, the censor board asked them to change the name 'Janaki' as it also refers to the Hindu goddess Sita. The film tells the story of a woman who faced sexual assault and is pursuing a legal fight against the state.advertisementThe board reportedly said that God's name should not be given to a woman who was assaulted. The film's release was scheduled for June 27. Union Minister Suresh Gopi is yet to react to the controversy.The regional office of CBFC in Thiruvananthapuram cleared the film with a U/A certificate. The film was later forwarded to the CBFC headquarters in Mumbai and the officials there demanded a change in the title. If the film's title is changed, many dialogues in the film mentioning the name has to be changed too.
The Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA) condemned this and said they will organise protests if the board continues with its demands.Director MB Padmakumar alleged that his upcoming film 'Token Number' also faced similar issue. His film was certified a few days ago after he accepted the board's demands and changed the name Janaki to Jayanthi.'My film was censored on May 22. On the 23rd, I got to know about the demand. My character's name is Janaki Abraham. The film was cleared by the Trivandrum office, but since it's a feature film, they sent it to Mumbai office and then a demand was kept that the name be changed. It was informed unofficially. They were making WhatsApp calls. They had a problem with the relationship between Janaki and Abraham as well. I don't think the central government is aware of this. If they had this agenda, they could have sent the film to the revised committee. This could be the thought of the officials,' Padmakumar said.
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