Kangana Ranaut’s film Emergency has run into a lot of trouble. The Bombay High Court did not show any mercy to the actress, as Sikh organizations were against it. The court observed that it could not allow the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to issue a certificate to the film in terms of the judgment by referring to the previous order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
However, by that setback, Ranaut, a BJP MP, too claimed some sort of victory on X, asserting that the high court condemned the CBFC of unlawful restraint of the film’s certificate. Jointly produced by Ranaut’s Manikarnika Films and Zee Studios, Emergency was scheduled to see the light of the day on September 6. However, such a decision seems to imply that the film’s release may be postponed for a considerable amount of time in the future.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee expressed concern, claiming that the film distorted the Sikhs’ image and should not be shown. Media also suggested that CBFC had withheld the film’s certification because of certain complaints from different religious groups, while sources reported that the film’s content was quite sensitive.
Another petition was filed in the Madhya Pradesh High Court as Public Interest Litigation against Emergency, and the CBFC replied, stating that the film had not yet been cleared.
Before the court, Zee’s legal representation forwarded a submission that the CBFC had considered the film fit for exhibition without restriction save for changes. However, again, a new version was submitted with all the changes, and then finally, the film was submitted with all the changes required, and the needed certificate was not issued by the CBFC, citing objections reportedly.
CBFC’s representative admitted that certification is possible only when the chairperson certifies it and, therefore, revealed that the Bombay High Court cannot force the board to provide the certificate because of the existing order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
The court finally dismissed the filmmakers’ prayer for relief, which made it necessary to follow the order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. It stressed the theme of judicial decency, apart from asserting that the CBFC had to consider any objections before certifying. The court did, however, get concerned with the imprecisions as to the time delays that will affect the film’s release, stating that there are high risks of high capital investments at play.
