Daily Times

• Barbie one of most anticipated and most celebrated movies of year.
• Board members to hold thorough review to decide on screening.
• Punjab’s censor board official denies any “pro-LGBT”content in film.

LAHORE: The Punjab Censor Board will decide the fate of the Hollywood blockbuster “Barbie” today (Tuesday) in a meeting of all members of the regulator body, according to interim Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s directions, The News reported.

“Barbie” is one of the most anticipated and celebrated films of the year so far, but not in Punjab, where the government pulled the picture from theaters due to allegedly “pro-LGBT” content and halted screenings shortly after its debut.

The fantasy-comedy picture was released in theaters around the world on July 21, but it was returned in Punjab due to directions from the Secretary Ministry of Information and Culture.

It should be mentioned that Punjab’s Film Censor Board Secretary Rehan S Khan has denied that the film contains any such content. “Yes, there was objectionable material that the board removed, but none expressing homosexuality,” he told Geo Fact Check.

“All censor board members [should] conduct a thorough review of the movie — Barbie — on Tuesday, after which a decision regarding its permission for screening in Punjab will be made,” the government said in a statement released on Monday.

The board members will discuss the conditions for the exhibition movie while conducting a thorough review of the movie. A decision will then be made regarding its approval for “Barbie” screening in Punjab.

The world is abuzz with “Barbie” fever since the release of the movie about the iconic doll, as the theatres and cinemas everywhere are full of moviegoers, all dressed in pink.

The Margot Robbie (Barbie) and Ryan Gosling (Ken) starrer showed no signs of slowing down in its second weekend at the box office as it has made more than $351 million in the US and Canada since opening on July 21, and nearly $775 million globally.