Mersal: TN filmmaker ready for cut after BJP row

CHENNAI: Tamil star Vijay’s Diwali release ‘Mersal’ raised high decibels in national politics on Saturday, with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi supporting the movie that came under attack from BJP for making fun of demonetisation and flaying GST.
On Saturday evening, however, the movie’s producer Murali Ramaswamy met TN BJP president Tamilisai Soundararajan and other leaders to clear the air.He said the leaders accepted his explanation, but “if there are misleading scenes in the film, we are ready to remove them”. Hours later, the production house’s CEO tweeted that no scene was cut or muted.
Earlier in the day, Rahul took to social media by tweeting: “Mr Modi, cinema is a deep expression of Tamil culture and language. Don’t try to demon-etise Tamil pride by interfering in Mersal”.
Former Union finance minister P Chidambaram joined in, tweeting, “Notice to film makers: Law is coming, you can only make documentaries praising government’s policies”. In another tweet, he said, “BJP demands deletion of dialogues in ‘Mersal’.
Support for Vijay, who plays a doctor-crusader in the movie, also came from DMK working president M K Stalin. “BJP’s attempt to muzzle criticism is contrary to democratic principles. DMK always stands for freedom of speech and creative expression,” tweeted Stalin. From the film community, one of the first voices of support to ‘Mersal’ had come from Kamal Haasan. “Mersal was certified. Don’t re-censor it. Counter criticism with logical response. Dont silence critics. India will shine when it speaks,” Kamal tweeted on Friday.
AISMK leader and actor Sarath Kumar echoed: “A film which is certified by censor board cannot be questioned. If questionable, why censor board at all?” Meanwhile, CPI state secretary R Mutharasan said in a statement the party in power did not have the authority to muzzle critical voices.
Since the movie’s release, Tamil Nadu BJP leaders have been demanding deletion of a few scenes that are critical about high GST rates prevalent in the country. A section of doctors in the state have also been protesting against the movie for its “unsavoury comments” on them.
South Indian Artistes’ Association president Nasser, in a statement, said, “Freedom of expression is called into question when a film certified by the Centre-administered censor board is allowed to be modified or prevented from screening on the basis of objections raised by an individual.”
Tamil Film Producers Council president Vishal said, “An individual can develop his or her own view about a film. He may propagate his views about the film, but demanding cuts in the film is wrong. It will set a bad precedent.”
Tamil Film Producers Council treasurer and producer of ‘Joker’ S R Prabhu tweeted, “Those who cannot tolerate criticism should not be part of a party or a government.”
Director of ‘Dharmadurai’ Seenu Ramasamy tweeted, “Freedom of expression is the basic right of a creator. That right should not be snatched away in the name of caste, religion, politics or business.”