Why censors should leave Bollywood alone.

last updated 8 January 2015

India

Pooja Bedi

The “moral police” want to take over Bollywood, said Pooja Bedi in Delhi’s Times of India. A bunch of “regressive Indians” are trying to force a ban on every vice in Indian movies, from smoking to nudity. They fear that innocent young Indians will be influenced by such examples. “For heaven’s sake! How many of you started smoking” because actor Shah Rukh Khan “puffed away on-screen?” How many “became depraved” after watching a racy love scene? The numbers must be pretty low. After all, when I was in high school, British rock band Pink Floyd’s rebellious film The Wall was a hit across India, but we all still showed up for class and raised our hands respectfully before speaking. Nobody burned down the school. Why should we start censoring films now? The Americans allowed the Michael Moore film Fahrenheit 911, which accused the Bush administration of all manner of hideous crimes, to be screened across the country. That simple fact “certifies America as a practicing democracy.” India should follow that “progressive and liberal” lead.