The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Pornography: Censor board engages private detective agency

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 10, 2006

Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Pornography: Censor board engages private detective agency

G Anand

Bid to detect cinemas screening films interspersed with pornographic clippings

Thiruvananthapuram: The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has engaged a private detective agency to blow the whistle on cinema owners who screen films interspersed with pornographic clippings.

The agency, which has been working for the CBFC in Kerala for the past one year, has helped the State police detect 104 cases of illegal screening of feature films interpolated with pornographic scenes.

The cinema owners have been booked on the charge of violating the Indian Cinematographic and Indecent Representation of Women Acts.

24 cases in February

Additional Regional Officer, CBFC, E.N. Sajith said that in February alone the CBFC could detect 24 cases of public screening of films spliced with pornographic content. The interpolations take place at the level of the producer, distributor and the exhibitor.

The CBFC had recently taken action against producers who introduced pornographic scenes into their films after getting censor certification.

The CBFC is now insisting that makers of music albums and mimicry programmes submit their products for certification.

The CBFC has come across instances of forging and tampering of censor board certificates. All film advertisements, including those appearing in print, should carry the censor certificate showing the rating of the movie. Only film posters approved by the CBFC should be used for advertisement purposes.

However, these rules are observed more in the breach. The CBFC has stepped up vigilance against possible violations of the law relating to the improper use and representation of national symbols in films and mimicry programmes.

According to the police, Thiruvananthapuram has emerged as the hub of the illegal distribution of pornographic film reels in the State.

Several `fly-by-night' film distributors have set up shop for the purpose in the city. In the past six months, the police seized 31 boxes containing pornographic film reels.

A. Pramod Kumar, sub-inspector, said "blue film" reels are imported from Tamil Nadu. Usually the "porn film boxes" are disguised as classic Malayalam or Tamil films.

"If there are more than eight reels in a film box, we know for sure that the extra reels contain pornographic content," he said.

Many cinema owners who are facing hard times owing to the popularity of cable television and pirated film CDs have no choice but to exhibit films with pornographic content.

Such movies are proving to be big draw and the short screening time helps exhibitors save on power, a cinema owner said.

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