The controversy over the Censor Board's list of banned 'abusive' words has taken a new turn with CBFC chief Pahlaj Nihalani lashing out at his colleague for publicly criticising it and defending the list
Censor board chief Pahlaj Nihalani on Tuesday defended the banned words list issued by CBFC, saying anyone having a problem with the guidelines should approach the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
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Nihalani, who was appointed as Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chief after Leela Samson resigned, was criticised by fellow board member Ashoke Pandit.
Censor board chief Pahlaj Nihalani
Pandit had tweeted that board members were not consulted before the list, which was leaked to media, was forwarded to regional offices.
Pandit, who is making a film on mafia don Dawood, had taken to Twitter and said that the list of banned words was against freedom of speech and expression. He had also added that despite being a censor board member he was not consulted.
Nihalani said his office had made a list of most commonly used cuss words.
"I have not made up these words. The list was given to me by my office and it was circulated among us. It was not for the media. It was not to be made public. It was given to them to follow the guidelines," Nihalani told a leading news channel.
"I am just following the guidelines. I am not bringing anything on my own. If the industry people have a problem, they should go to the ministry and get their approval. I will follow it," he added.
The list, which includes some 28 cuss words, has angered filmmakers in Bollywood. They have called it absurd, regressive and against creative freedom.
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