The New Indian Express News

Filmmaker Dr Biju slams IFFK organisers over film cancellations amid censor clearance row

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even as the screening of 19 international films at the 30th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) ran into an unprecedented crisis following the Centres failure to issue censor exemption certificates , acclaimed filmmaker Dr Biju has criticised the festival organisers for what he described as serious procedural lapses. In a Facebook post, Dr Biju said that while there was no doubt that the central government had been increasingly intervening in cinema and the arts, scheduling films without securing the necessary permissions was a flawed practice that needed correction. He also took strong exception to the absence of the Kerala State Chalachithra Academy chairman and the continued vacancy in the post of the festivals artistic director. Pointing out that foreign films exempted from censorship are normally submitted well in advance for clearance from the Centre, Dr Biju said clarity was needed on whether the Chalachithra Academy forwarded the films within the stipulated timeframe or merely weeks before the festival. He added that if the films were indeed submitted late, it reflected poor planning on the part of the organisers. The award-winning director further observed that only films which receive clearance from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting should be scheduled for screening at a festival. He also said the Centre must clearly explain why permission was granted for some films while approvals for others were delayed. Scheduling films without prior permissions is not something any festival would do, and cancelling 19 films altogether is an extremely uncommon practice in international film festivals, Dr Biju wrote. Taking a dig at the organisers, he remarked that those entrusted with managing such crises, the Chalachithra Academy chairman and the festivals artistic director, were conspicuously absent. The fact that a person equivalent to a dummy was selected as the Academy president, who merely visits the festival, shows the flimsy manner in which the government treats the Academy, he said. Noting that the post of artistic director has remained vacant for the past few years, Dr Biju added that leaving the festival to be handled solely by officials in the absence of both key positions reflected a careless attitude and a lack of vision on the part of the organisers.