All over the Board

Parshathy J Nath

AUGUST 14, 2017 13:51 IST

UPDATED: AUGUST 14, 2017 15:38 IST

Link:  http://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/art/all-over-the-board/article19490606.ece

Leena Manimekalai

Film under CBFC ire: Is It Too Much To Ask

My latest documentary is about two transwomen friends trying to find an apartment in Chennai to rent. When I applied for CBFC certification, the Regional Officer in the Chennai office questioned me about showing the film to children, as the lead characters were neither men nor women! He certified it “A”. My feature Sengadal, The Dead Sea was banned, because they claimed it would affect “bilateral relations between India and Sri Lanka.”

When I initially made films on caste and gender violence, my work was constantly turned down as the Censor Board feared that it would spark off riots.But the officers never knew that I had screened them across hundreds of villages and towns. In all these places, the films only created a discourse and not