CBFC orders over 45 cuts in film about child trafficking starring Manoj Bajpayee, Freida Pinto

A film starring Manoj Bajpayee, Richa Chadha, Rajkummar Rao, Freida Pinto and TV actor Mrunal Thakur, which tells a hard-hitting tale about child trafficking and sex trade, sounds promising for more than one reason. Love Sonia, which is reportedly backed by Priyanka Chopra , is a highly anticipated film, as it is said to delve into the life of a little village girl stuck in the hold of the flesh trade. [caption id=“attachment_4058183” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Freida Pinto in a still from Love Sonia. Image from Facebook/@LoveSonia[/caption] Unfortunately, the film’s content may be compromised when it comes to its release in India. The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has reportedly ordered that all Hindi and English abuses must be removed, and that scenes of sexual abuse must be reduced drastically in length. After giving more than 45 cuts have been ordered, an ‘A’ certificate was finally awarded to the film, reports DNA. This is surprising, considering the CBFC’s emphasis on how films certified ‘A’ will not be subject to cuts. It also brings into question how effective a film about such a subject can be, when the sequences about abuse themselves are shortened. It is said that director Tabrez Noorani spent 12 years waiting to make Love Sonia, as he used that time to research, visit brothels and work with NGOs to save children from the flesh trade. “Love Sonia is the film I’ve always wanted to direct… The only significant film I’ve seen on human trafficking is Lukas Moodysson’s Lilya 4-ever. Otherwise, Indian films on the theme like Nagesh Kukunoor’s Laxmi and Pradeep Sarkar’s _Mardaani_do do not have the bandwidth to make a broad impact,” said Noorani, speaking about how justice has not been done to the subject of human trafficking in cinema.