Film about Indian fishermen and Lankan navy avoids ban

Filmmaker Leena Manimekalai has found her shaken faith in democracy restored. At the end of a long battle, her film, ‘Sengadal, the Dead Sea,’ was cleared by the Central Board of Film Certification(CBFC) with an ‘A’ certificate without any cut for theatrical release.

This docu-fiction, which portrays the plight of the families of fishermen, who were allegedly killed by the Lankan Navy at sea, was earlier shot down by the regional censor board on the grounds that it contained “political reference in a denigrating way on the functioning of Indian and Sri Lankan governments”.

The filmmaker decided to challenge the ban with the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) authorities, New Delhi.

Further, the tribunal ordered the censor board to look at the film afresh, setting aside the earlier reasons stated for refusal. A new examining committee was constituted and the film has now been cleared for public release in theatres.

“After a tough struggle, Sengadal is now cleared for public exhibition in theatres. This is really a victorious moment for all those who believe in artistic freedom and to show truth to people uncompromisingly,” said Leena Manimekalai.

She also added, “The role of the board should only be to certify the film, not censor the film. They should not decide what people have to see, hear or think, which I think is a complete violation of true democracy.”

She thanked Leela Samson, chairperson CBFC and director Pakkirisamy for their support in making the film see the light of the day. The film had used a participatory style where the widows of fishermen in Dhanushkodi narrate the deathly anguish they undergo every day for survival. The film will hit the screens in a month’s time. (ENS)