Thalapathy Vijay's Jana Nayagan cleared after CBFC orders 12 cuts, check full list

Jana Nayagan (Pic/X)

Thalapathy Vijay's last film, Jana Nayagan, has finally received an A certificate from the CBFC and is all set to release on July 24. While it is a joyous moment for his fans, the film has undergone several changes. The makers were directed to implement 12 cuts, including edits involving political references and sensitive scenes.

CBFC changes directed for Jana Nayagan

The CBFC cleared Jana Nayagan only after asking the makers to implement 12 changes. Most of the edits involve political references, religious mentions, and scenes the board considered sensitive.

In Jana Nayagan, Vijay's character is named Thalapathy Vetri Kondan, whose initials spell TVK. Coincidentally, TVK is also the abbreviation of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, the political party launched by the actor-turned-politician. According to India Today, one of the key edits was made at the 110:23 timestamp, where the dialogue, "Ambedkar satam…to… TVK sattam," was altered. The reference was removed from both the audio and visual tracks, with the dialogue muted and modified without affecting the film's runtime.

Religious terms, including Bhagavathan, Ranganathar, and OM, have been muted, while the word "OM" has specifically been removed from a dialogue explaining Operation Meluha.

The board also objected to a few dialogues, asking the team to mute one referring to Saddam Hussein's execution and another containing the line, "India en kalla vizha vaikaren," which translates to, "I am holding a secret celebration in India."

Several visual changes were ordered as well. A shot showing a District Collector's office badge being rolled down was removed, and the entire dialogue beginning with, "Ponnoda... kuduthu vachirukkanu, Udambu erukkunu" ("He's lucky to have a daughter like that... and she's got a fine physique"), has been muted. The CBFC also instructed the makers to replace a scene involving a child-burning visual, mute the word "Siluvailla," and replace the name "Sheela Rani" wherever it appeared in the film.

Following these revisions, the film's approved runtime now stands at 3 hours and 3 minutes.

About Jana Nayagan's delay

Jana Nayagan was originally scheduled to release on January 9, ahead of the Pongal holidays. The board had withheld its earlier U/A certificate, stating that it had received a complaint alleging the film hurt religious sentiments. The production house even approached the Madras High Court. However, after a seven-month delay, the film is finally seeing the light of day.

Apart from this, the film also found itself at the centre of another controversy in April when an unfinished high-definition version surfaced online.

The leak triggered a police investigation that led to multiple arrests, including that of a freelance film editor.