No Fathers in Kashmir: Ashvin Kumar's directorial starring Soni Razdan finally gets U/A certificate

National Award winner Ashvin Kumar’s No Fathers in Kashmir, a film that narrates a love story between two teenagers after their fathers disappear in the valley, was finally granted a U/A certificate by the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) after an eight month long struggle. The body has also suggested a few cuts and disclaimers, reports  Hindustan Times.

The clash between the makers of No Fathers in Kashmir and the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) began in July 2018. The first screening took place in October when the censor board granted the film an A certificate. This decision was challenged when the makers moved to FCAT in November. Kumar wanted the film to get a U/A certificate as he felt it needed to reach a wider audience. Following this two hearings took place in December and January.

Alia Bhatt had also tweeted in support of the film, which stars her mother Soni Razdan. Calling Bhatt’s tweet ‘misinformed’, the CBFC denied banning the film in the first place.  Razdan and journalist-turned-film producer Pritish Nandy had also tweeted to  CBFC chief Prasoon Joshi on 9 January, urging him to reconsider the decision.

“Ten years ago in my film Inshallah, Football I had warned that alienating the youth of Kashmir would have catastrophic consequences. Censorship of the truth about Kashmir has caused a crisis of compassion, amplifying misguided fears of ordinary Indians towards ordinary Kashmiris. Keeping public away from information and truth is such a myopic policy - it only breeds more hostility when the need of the hour is empathy leading to peace. Anyone who genuinely wants peace will understand that we must first stop censoring films that tell the truth about Kashmir,” said Kumar in a statement, according to Hindustan Times.

The cast of No Fathers in Kashmir Anshuman Jha and Kulbushan Kharbanda in pivotal roles.