Censor board chief Leela Samson quits citing government interference - Livemint

Leela Samson alleged that recent cases of interference in the working of CBFC by the ministry, through an ‘additional charge’ CEO, and corrupt panel members have caused a degradation of the values of the board and the position of the chairperson. Photo: HT

New Delhi: A film that features a self-styled spiritual leader in bejewelled costume riding motorbikes and sending bad guys flying has prompted the chief of India’s censor panel to quit, citing government interference.

Leela Samson resigned on Thursday after an appeals tribunal reversed the panel’s decision to bar theatres from showing the film, “MSG: The Messenger of God”, on the grounds that it was a promotional feature.

“There is interference, there is coercion,” Samson told television broadcaster CNN-IBN, adding that the tribunal, whose decisions usually take a month, had cleared “MSG” in 24 hours.

However, the government, which runs the censorship and appeals process, did not interfere, said Rajyavardhan Rathore, minister of state for information and broadcasting.

The imbroglio has delayed the release of MSG, which stars Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh , the 47-year-old leader of the Dera Sacha Sauda sect, beyond its originally set date of Friday.

The decision to release the “entirely unsuitable” film had made a mockery of the censor board, said another panel member, Nandini Sardesai .

“If they had to give it a certificate and overrule us, why have a board in place?” Samson told Reuters.

But far from being unsuitable, say the film-makers, “MSG” fights alcoholism and drug addiction, and extols the virtues of celibacy and a vegetarian diet.

The debate went viral on social media, with hashtags #MSGinCinemas and #WeLoveMSG trending on Twitter.

“All hail freedom of expression. MSG ... is India’s Charlie Hebdo,” said Twitter user “Finger of India”, referring to the French satirical newspaper attacked by Islamist gunmen this month.

Rockstar godman

The movie’s trailer, which has racked up more than 2 million views on YouTube, shows Ram Rahim Singh, complete with flowing beard and hairy outstretched arms, glaring at evildoers before scattering them with his fists.

Mobbed by thousands of doting disciples, he struts and sings like a Bollywood hero.

Singh wrote and co-directed the film, besides singing and composing its music.

A sequel is in the works with profits earmarked to fund a hospital and HIV research centre, said Aditya Insaan , a spokesman for the film’s distributor, Hakikat Entertainment.

Even apart from the celluloid derring-do, Singh is a controversial figure.

In December, a court asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate claims that Singh forced 400 followers to undergo castrations at his ashram in Haryana, in order to experience God.

Singh has denied the allegations, but the CBI has filed a case.

Several groups representing the Sikh minority that makes up 2% of India’s population of 1.2 billion have demanded a ban on the film, in which they say Singh distorted their scriptures and dressed up as a 17th-century Sikh guru.

“We are not against freedom of expression, but the organisation against Sikhism,” said S. Simranjit Singh Mann , the chief of one such group.

Insaan, the spokesman for the film’s distributor, has denied these contentions. Reuters