Kamal Haasan jokes about CBFC while screening his Lead on Gandhi documentary: ‘Censor aa, thadangal aa?’

During the screening of the Lead on Gandhi documentary at a Chennai college, Kamal Haasan joked about censorship. Here's why.

Actor Kamal Haasan was recently the chief guest at Women’s Christian College’s Festeve ‘26 fest. The event, held in Chennai, saw him speak to students and stream his documentary, Lead on Gandhi. When the documentary froze during the screening, the actor couldn’t help but crack a joke about censorship.

Kamal Haasan cracked a joke about censorship when his Gandhi documentary froze midway.

Kamal Haasan jokes about censorship

At the event, Kamal spoke to the students and, before wrapping it up, screened his documentary on Mahatma Gandhi on a large screen. He stood at the podium and watched it with a serious look on his face, as did the students, given the serious subject matter. However, after playing for a few minutes, the frame froze.

After looking around in surprise, Kamal took to the podium and jokingly asked, “Censor aa, thadangal aa? (Is it censored or just a glitch?)” making everybody there crack up. Some students even cheered loudly and waved at him as he continued to patiently wait for the documentary to resume. It took a few minutes for the college management to resolve the issue and resume screening.

Sharing a clip of the moment on X (formerly Twitter), one joked that it was “The Classic Kamal reply.” Another wrote, “Kamal is a wise man.” “Is there anyone else like him who can talk like this?” wrote another. This comes on the heels of Kamal stating that freedom of expression is at stake in the row over Vijay’s film Jana Nayagan and the CBFC.

What did Kamal Haasan say about CBFC?

In January, when it was clear that Vijay’s final film, Jana Nayagan, wasn’t hitting screens as planned due to a CBFC censorship delay, Kamal took to social media to release a note. Written on his letterhead as a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, the actor called for reform. He wrote, “This moment is larger than any one film; it reflects the space we accord art and artists in a constitutional democracy.”

He called for a ‘principled relook’ at the certification process with ‘defined timelines for certification, transparent evaluation, and written, reasoned justification’ for the cuts and modifications meted out. Kamal also called for the film industry to unite to engage in a ‘meaningful, constructive’ dialogue with the government. “Such reform will safeguard creative freedom, uphold constitutional values, and strengthen India's democratic institutions by affirming trust in its artists and its people,” he added.

Last seen in Mani Ratnam’s Thug Life, Kamal is now shooting for a yet-to-be-titled film by Anbariv. He is also producing a film starring Rajinikanth, directed by Cibi Chakaravarthi.