Final Cut - TOI - Balh mentioned..

WHO MAKES THE FINAL CUT?

With the I&B Ministry suggesting U/A films air at a later time band, does the same work for TV shows and ads with mature content?

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How many cuts in an adult movie will make it suitable for family viewing on Indian TV? For that matter, how many beeps would make the content of a reality show eligible to be viewed, while almost every youngster watching that show knows what those beeps could mean? The latest news of censorship issues faced by The Dirty Picture's television premiere has really led to a chain reaction with the question of how much to cut, how much to show and also what to show on TV.
Television is a medium which caters to all target groups in India, starting from general entertainment channels, youth entertainment channels, kids' entertainment channels, factual entertainment channels and lifestyle channels, which leaves the telly viewer with a potpourri of programmes and myriad options. But the million rupee question is who will decide which content is objectionable and which content is not for children's viewing. While films have the Censor Board to give out certificates before their BO releases, there are no such certificates for television.
The tube's seen it all. Not many years ago, kiddie show Shin-Chan was banned from being aired for its content only to make an emphatic comeback in a bolder avatar. While kids might have loved Popeye, the show with its humor elements had content that dealt with violence.
Shows like Emotional Atyachaar, Splitsvilla, Roadies had episodes which apart from dollops of entertainment quotient also had verbal volleys exchanged between participants. While on Roadies neither the anchor nor the participants seem to have qualms about their on screen conduct, and cuss words are acceptable lingo to get the 'hip' tag.
Coming back to TV soaps, shows like Amrit Manthan, Tum Dena Saath Mera and Bade Acche Laggte Hain have aired intimate scenes in the recent episodes, most of which went viral overnight. At the same time, movies like
Murder 2, Ghajini, Singham, Force with lots of violence which were aired on prime time bands. Does it mean that violence in some way or the other scores over adult content? Or does TV really need the moral police to keep a check on content? Or is television in India not supposed to air adult content at all?
Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri says, "I don't know what kind of moral policing we follow when it comes to airing adult films on television. They show gruesome murders, women walking naked on streets on news channels, boozing and drug exposure on prime time channels. But when it comes to airing an adult film on television, NGOs will file PILs and register their complaints.
Even after registering the PIL, the government just sits on everything and does not take a decision to air the film nor do they support the moral police! Children are exposed to so many things on television. How can a movie possibly corrupt their minds? When it comes to censorship on television, there are too many parties involved — the censor board, the Information & Broadcasting Ministry, NGOs. There are no laws, no policies or proper system in place when it comes to censorship on TV." While the debate on to cut or not cut continues, many in the TV industry feel it is difficult to comment on the issue. "It is a catch 22 situation which requires serious thought," says actor Anoop Soni who hosts a crime show. He adds, "While it is easy to say that children can have access to adult content on mediums other than television, a careful thought on time band will help resolve the issue. There should be a different time band for shows with mature content."
TV actress Aishwarya
Sakhuja feels censorship is the need of the hour. "Many times, promos (of a show/film) are more titillating than the real show. Since these are aired in all time-bands, there needs to be a censorship. Shows or movies with violence or sexual content should be aired post 11 pm so that the minors aren't exposed to them." Actor Karan Tacker adds another angle as he poses a question, "Why just television? Even the internet needs censorship! Minors have easy access to sexual or violent content on popular websites as well!" His colleague and TV star Karanvir Bohra has a d i f f e r -
ent perspective. "There should be a time-band for content which is sexually explicit or violent, there are various mediums that a minor can have access to. A minor might be watching violent content or po*n on internet. Then internet needs to censored too! We need to stop being regressive about TV content. A good parent will constantly keep a check on the minors and prohibit access to unsuitable content."
There should be consistency so far as censorship on TV is involved, feel some producers and directors. Abhinay Deo, filmmaker says, "For Delhi Belly, we had redubbed the entire film for the television audience to make it suitable for family audiences. There are some lacunae so far as censorship is concerned on television, because on one hand you ban a certain film from being aired and on the other, you have titillating item numbers and violent films and shows aired at prime time. As a father, my concern would be to ensure that my children don't get affected by certain shows and scenes. It would be appropriate that certain films have a parental guidance certificate or are aired after 11pm." Actor-producer JD Majethia, who's also a parent
himself says, "It is very important for soap/show makers to follow guidelines suggested by the I & B Ministry. It is our priority to keep a check on content. There are certain TV commercials which shouldn't be aired in prime time band. As a parent, it is important to be a decision maker about what your child should watch." Viewer discretion is important feel some. Producer Rajan Shahi adds, "Channels do have strict guidelines for content, but the audience has the biggest power— the remote. It's up to them to choose what they want to watch. Of course certain programmes surely need to be slotted at different time band keeping in mind that audiences are families with children."
Whether the strategic time band will work wonders or the scissors of censorship, only will time tell.
With inputs from Shruti Jambhekar, Tanvi
Trivedi and Navya Malini