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Thakur seeks removal of scene from Oppenheimer, warns of action
After objections were raised by some quarters over a scene in Christopher Nolan’s film Oppenheimer, Union minister Anurag Thakur has questioned the CBFC for giving clearance to the film with the controversial scene, and directed that it should be promptly removed, officials said.
After objections were raised by some quarters over a scene in Christopher Nolan’s film Oppenheimer, Union information and broadcasting (I&B) minister Anurag Thakur has questioned the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) for giving clearance to the film with the controversial scene, and directed that it should be promptly removed, officials said on Monday.
The film has sparked a controversy with several people from across the country expressing their disappointment on social media over an intimate scene in the film featuring Hindu scripture Bhagavad Gita.
According to a senior official at the ministry, Thakur has demanded absolute accountability from the CBFC in response to the objectionable scene, and expressed his displeasure over the board’s failure to “safeguard the interests of the public”.
The minister has also warned that the board members would be responsible for their actions and negligence, the official said.
A spokesperson for the ministry, however, said, “The ministry is not involved in decisions of CBFC”.
When contacted, CBFC member Mihir Bhuta said that there had been “no meeting of the review board to discuss the movie’s certification”.
Uday Mahurkar, information commissioner, government of India, and founder of Save Culture Save India Foundation, welcomed Thakur’s prompt action and tweeted, “The nation feels relieved it awaits equally prompt action from director Christopher Nolan so that the scene is removed worldwide.”
Earlier on Saturday, Mahurkar wrote an open letter to Nolan alleging that a scene featured in the film makes a “scathing attack on Hinduism”.
“The Bhagavad Gita is one of the most revered scriptures of Hinduism. Gita has been the inspiration for countless sanyasis, brahmcharis and legends who live a life of self-control and perform selfless noble deeds… We do not know the motivation and logic behind this unnecessary scene in the life of a scientist. But this is a direct assault on religious beliefs of a billion tolerant Hindus, rather it amounts to waging a war on the Hindu community and almost appears to be part of a larger conspiracy by anti-Hindu forces,” he said in his letter.
“We urge, on behalf of billions of Hindus and the timeless tradition of lives being transformed by revered Gita, to do all that is needed to uphold the dignity of their revered book and remove this scene from your film across the world,” he added.
