Chandigarh: On the day when makers of ‘Udta Punjab’ heaved a sigh of relief after the Bombay High Court cleared the film for release with just one cut, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has now ordered the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and the film producers to arrange for a pre-release screening on June 14 for the court’s representative to analyse and submit a report.
A vacation bench headed by Justice M Jeyapaul also issued a show-cause notice to the Government of India, the CBFC and producers of the movie as to why the public exhibition of the movie should not be restrained.
The court issued the order while hearing a petition by High Court lawyer and Jalandhar resident Wattan Sharma, who had approached the court stating that the unedited version of the movie be examined by it.
The petitioner had also sought directions to restrain the release of the movie till the court’s decision.
The court was told that Punjabi culture had been portrayed in “bad light”. “The film reflects negative branding of Punjab and Punjabis, especially the youth. If the film is released, it will have adverse repercussions all over Punjab,” the court was told.
On Monday, Bombay HC allowed the release of ‘Udta Punjab’ with one major cut and three disclaimers at the start of the film.
Refusing to put a stay on film's release, the bench directed the CBFC to issue a fresh certificate to the movie in two days.
The High Court also told CBFC to not act like a grandmother and change as per times.
