Jana Nayagan producer withdraws petition against CBFC from Madras HC; what this means for Vijay film's release date

After a month-long legal battle, KVN Productions has withdrawn its petition against the CBFC over certification of Jana Nayagan. Everything that happened.

On Tuesday, the Madras High Court permitted the producer of Vijay’s film Jana Nayagan, KVN Productions, to withdraw their petition, which sought direction to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to grant a censor certificate to the film. After a month-long legal battle, the producer withdrew, allowing the revising committee to take over the film’s certification. Here’s what it means for the film’s release.

Vijay's final film Jana Nayagan was supposed to be released in theatres on January 9 but is yet to be censored by the CBFC.

Madras HC allows Jana Nayagan producer to withdraw petition

On Monday evening, the producer of Jana Nayagan requested the court to allow him to withdraw the writ petition he had filed against the CBFC in January. The matter came up for hearing before Justice PT Asha, who had asked the CBFC to certify the film in the first HC hearing. The judge granted the movie producer permission to withdraw his petition on Tuesday. The judge dismissed the petition as ‘withdrawn’.

The same judge had allowed the petition filed by KVN Productions on January 6 and on January 9, directed the CBFC to grant a censor certificate to the film. However, on the same day, a bench comprising Chief Justice M M Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan stayed her order after the CBFC filed an appeal. After hearing both sides on January 20, the bench set aside the single judge’s order on January 27 and asked the producer to amend his prayer. The Supreme Court had refused to intervene.

The issue arose when, on December 22, the producer of Jana Nayagan was informed by the CBFC that the examining committee had viewed the film and would certify it UA 16+. Upon not receiving certification or any communication from the censor board till January 5, the producer approached the court. The CBFC stated that the film was being sent to the revising committee after a member of the examining committee filed a complaint, and that the Chairperson, Prasoon Joshi, put it on hold.

What does this mean for Jana Nayagan’s release date

During the HC hearing held on January 20, the CBFC stated that the revising committee takes a maximum of 20 days to certify a film. It was also implied that had there not been a court case, Jana Nayagan would’ve been certified by the committee by January 26. The producer’s counsel remarked in court that the CBFC is asking them to reinsert the 14 cuts and modifications previously asked by the examining committee before it’s watched by the revising committee. It was called a ‘meaningless and empty exercise’.

However, given that the producer has now withdrawn the case, the film will be sent to the revising committee for certification, if all goes well. Amid the legal battle, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting also informed the Lok Sabha that the average time for certifying a film has been reduced to 18 days. The data they released shows that in 2025, 55 films were challenged before the revising committee and 10 were challenged before the High Court. If all goes well, this means that Jana Nayagan will be certified within 20 days of its submission to the committee.

With the Tamil Nadu elections not scheduled yet and Vijay planning to enter politics with his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party, the film might get a summer release before the Model Code of Conduct comes into effect.