'Udta Punjab' vs censors: Aamir Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut weigh in

More voices of support are being heard for the Shahid Kapoor-Alia Bhatt-Kareena Kapoor starrer Udta Punjab, in the film’s ongoing battle with the Central Board of Film Certification. While Shyam Benegal, Mukesh and Mahesh Bhatt, Zoya Akhtar and Sudhir Mishra — to name just a few — had already expressed that they stood for the Udta Punjab’s right to freedom of expression (read Firstpost’s story here ), newer voices have been added to the discussion. [caption id=“attachment_2826570” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Udta Punjab[/caption] Among them, are those of Aamir Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut, SS Rajamouli, Anupam Kher and Sonakshi Sinha, to name just a few. Aamir Khan: Filmmakers’ voices should not be throttled Wishing the Udta Punjab team the very best in its fight against the CBFC’s cuts, Aamir Khan said, “This kind of thing reflects very badly on the CBFC. It’s a social film which talks about the drug addiction issue of Punjab’s youth. It has a good social message. I don’t think there’s anything that should be cut or not shown to the audience. It’s very important that filmmakers have a voice which is not throttled. In any society, the voice of the artiste should be free to speak what he wants to speak.” Priyanka Chopra: Creativity in democracy should not be stopped “Our forefathers achieved freedom of speech and expression for us after a long struggle… Creativity should not be stopped in democracy… In democracy you cannot dictate what one should eat or watch a movie on a social issue,” Priyanka told the media at a press conference, where she was announcing the new Bhojpuri film from her production house. Incidentally, Priyanka’s film Jai Gangaajal had also run into trouble with the CBFC. Priyanka asserted that the CBFC should stick to its mandate and be a “certification body, and not (a) censor”. Incidentally, Amitabh Bachchan had also made a similar point, about creativity being destroyed by censorship, when he was asked about the issue a couple of days ago. Kangana Ranaut: The censor board is bullying filmmakers Kangana, who picked up her ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year, 2015 – Special Achievement’ award on Thursday night, previously had her own issues with the CBFC, when the board asked for a scene in which her character’s bra was seen, in the film Queen, to be blurred. She also addressed the Udta Punjab row and said, “We have been very concerned with the way things are going. I am not a director; I have never been through the process. But my very close friends and people I closely work with seem extremely disturbed with the way things are — to an extent they feel bullied,” Kangana said. “I support them (the Udta Punjab team). They are legitimate artistes. They know the process of certification. It’s not censorship. We don’t have to have that parental attitude towards the audience.” SS Rajamouli: How can 6-7 people decide what is good for the entire nation? Baahubali director SS Rajamouli felt that a few cannot decide what the rest of the country can watch — as the censors seem to want to do in the case of Udta Punjab. “My sympathies lie with the filmmakers as I am a filmmaker myself. The simple logic is how can 6-7 or 10 members decide what is good or not good for the entire nation. Being a family head, I should decide what is good for me, my family or my kids to watch, not someone else,” Rajamouli said. Others from the film fraternity took to Twitter to succinctly tell the world just what they thought of the Udta Punjab censorship controversy. Anupam Kher and Sonakshi Sinha were among those who made no bones about which side they were rooting for:

#CBFC role in #UdtaPunjabControversy is most shocking. Cinema is a reflection of society. Sometimes a portrayal can help bring a change.

— Anupam Kher (@AnupamPKher) June 9, 2016

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Previously, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati also expressed her support towards the Udta Punjab team. — With PTI inputs