'Unfreedom' director calls for freedom of expression

New Delhi, April 13 (IANS) After "Unfreedom" was banned from releasing in India, its director Raj Amit Kumar has released a video appealing to everyone to sign a petition addressed to the prime minister, to protect the freedom of expression of all Indian citizens.

The video, which was uploaded on Youtube on April 9, questions the functioning of Central Board of Certification (CBFC) and the way it passes "imbecile decisions without batting an eyelid", read a statement.

In the video, the filmmaker states that the Censor Board should rate or certify a movie instead of banning and offering cuts. He also says that he will keep sending these signed petitions to the Prime Minister and Censor Board, until there is a real change.

Kumar is seeking support from everyone who believes in freedom of speech.

His movie "Unfreedom" juxtaposes two powerful and unflinching contemporary stories about religious fundamentalism and intolerance.

Shifting between New York and New Delhi, one tale follows a Muslim terrorist who kidnaps a liberal Muslim scholar in order to silence him, while the other charts the travails of a young woman whose devout father tries to force her into an arranged marriage, which she resists because she is secretly in love with another woman.

The four characters come face to face with gruesome acts of violence in battles of identity, sexuality, religion, love, and family.