Raajneeti censored: Denied certificate

Prakash Jha"s ambitious political drama Raajneeti has run into some more trouble, only this time from a source it least expected. The Censor Board, which viewed the film yesterday, has refused to grant it a certificate. The Ranbir Kapoor-Katrina Kaif starrer will now be referred to a Revising Committee before a final call is taken. Apparently the Censor Board feels that the 'hard hitting" political drama is a little too hard hitting in some portions, where the difference between real politicians and reel characters becomes uncomfortably thin.

After a lengthy debate, the screening committee decided that since it was a sensitive issue and could snowball into a major problem, it was only prudent to get a second opinion from more members of the Censor Board before issuing a certificate.

A source says, “The Censor Board seemed divided. While some officials felt that they could go ahead with the certification, others cautioned against any hasty decision."

While regional officer Vinayak Azad remained unavailable for comment, Raajneeti"s director Prakash Jha too seemed hesitant about speaking on the matter.

He initially maintained that there was no problem, even putting the delay down to technical reasons. “It is just that the screening could not be completed because of some reason," he said. But when it became clear that the Censor Board would not grant a certification immediately, he said, “Yes, the Revising Committee will now take a decision on Raajneeti. The Censor Board felt that they need to show the film to more officials before taking a decision."

Ever since Jha announced the film a year ago, there have been reports that Katrina"s character in the film is inspired by Sonia Gandhi. But Jha said he didn"t realise that it could cause so much trouble. “Frankly, I didn"t expect this. But it"s okay. I don"t think that the Revising Committee will necessarily find a problem with the film."