Pathaan controversy: So Mr Prasoon Joshi, the bikini stays?

Good to know that we have a liberal censor chief. Prasoon Joshi has allowed the saffron/orange bikini to stay in Siddharth Anand’s Pathaan. However, he misses the point. It’s not about the colour. It never was. In the past, our top heroines were very fond of the currently controversial colour. The gorgeous Mumtaz wore orange for nearly all her most famous dance numbers from Aaj kal tere mere pyar ke charche to Bindiya chamkegi to Agar dilbar ki rusvai. Imagine how much explanation Mumtaz would have to do for performing the stunning Mujra Agar dilbar ki rusvai in Khilona, or for that matter, the legendary Meena Kumari…how would she justify her orange/saffron costume for the Mujra Chalte chalte yuhin koi mil gaya tha in Pakeezah?

Ek to Mujra, upar se the stunning actress performing it was a Muslim!! Tauba! Asha Parekh one of the most popular leading ladies of the 1960s says, “Orange or saffron, call it what you like. But it was a very popular colour among all of us heroines. Sabhi rang khubsoorat hain, aur sabke hain (all the colours are beautiful and they belong to the universe). Why single out one colour as community-specific? I’ve worn orange and green with equal pride” Ashaji also feels the issue of obscenity is subjective. “See, what I may find unacceptable could be okay with others, and vice versa. You can’t say, ‘I don’t like this, so I won’t let anyone watch it.’ That is a totalitarian attitude and totally unacceptable.” The fact that the CBFC has decided to retain the _Besharam rang song_ with some discreet cut to neutralize the obscenity charge, proves that the current censor chief is on the same page as his predecessor. But the question is, will the audience accept the Besharam song? There is a nationwide hue and cry against it, which could have easily been avoided by toning down the erotic content. Why flaunt a provocative colour and attitude? Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based journalist. He has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. Read all the  Latest News,  Trending News and  Entertainment News here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.