'Charlie Kay Chakkar Mein' makers asked to delete reference to Anna Hazare

Naseeruddin Shah

Makers of an upcoming Naseeruddin Shah-starrer, 'Charlie Kay Chakkar Mein', have decided to approach the Censor Board's revising panel for certification after the examining committee asked for quite a few words to be muted, including a reference to social activist Anna Hazare.

Naseeruddin Shah

"We had sought an ‘A' certificate as the film deals with drug abuse and homicide among other issues. However, the five-member panel, which watched the final cut, objected to a passing mention of Anna Hazare even though his name hasn't been used in an offensive way. The dialogue goes like this: ‘Tumko kya zaroorat thi itna sach bolne ki? Kya Anna Hazare ne tumko kaha tha yeh kaam karke aao?' They don't understand that we are not insulting him," says producer Karan Arora.

This apart, the Board has asked the makers to mute nearly a dozen cuss words as well as a scene in which a girl snorts drugs. "If we are getting an adult tag, there shouldn't be any problem with the usage of commonly used cuss words like saala and chu''ya. If I remove those or Anna Hazare's name, the essence of the scene will be lost. Moreover, they didn't have any objection to a scene showing a group of boys sniffing narcotics, but want us to delete the portion showing a girl taking drugs," adds Arora.

The makers, however, are ready with the edited version since the film is slated to release next week. "If I want to release my film on time, I need to get the certificate three days in advance. We will have to attach it and send copies to various centres. Practically, I have only six days to release it. We will approach the revising committee, but are prepared for the worst," he says.