Justice League: CBFC delays release of Hindi, Telugu and Tamil versions due to heavy backlog

Justice League starring DC's best — Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Cyborg, Aquaman and The Flash — released in India on Friday. But the mighty superheroes seem to have run into an unexpected foe: India's very own CBFC (Central Board Of Film Certification).

While the original English language version hit theatres on Friday, the release of the regional versions have been postponed as they have not been 'certified' by the CBFC yet. A source confirmed to the English daily Mid-day that Warner Bros-India — the film's distributors — were told that owing to an already huge backlog of movies to be certified, CBFC did not have the time to watch the film.

Justice League released on Friday, 17 November. Warner Bros.

Justice League has been dubbed into Hindi, Tamil and Telugu for a pan-Indian release and capitalise on the box office collections over the opening weekend. But this holdup could cause heavy losses to the earnings of distributors and theatre-owners.

Trade analyst Atul Mohan revealed to Mid-day that it would also have a negative impact on the government's earnings. "It loses out on 28% GST for the projected business at the box office. The South is a big market for Hollywood films. So it's a lose-lose situation for all parties," he said.

Denzil Dias, vice president and managing director, Warner Bros-India, hoped the CBFC would resolve the issue soon and certify the regional language releases.