After Akshay Kumar starrer Padman faced some vile criticism from the country’s Federal Censor Board which refused to give its nod for its release, Bollywood star Anushka Sharma’s Pari has been flogged more or less, under the same banners.
Owner of Atrium Cinemas, Nadeem Mandiwalla, said that the horror film was cleared by provincial censor boards, however, the Central Board of Film Certification (CFBC) banned it. A senior member of CBC stated, “Pari’s script, dialogues, and storyline go against our Islamic values. The concepts within Islam have different ideologies about magic. This film stimulates the viewers in favour of black magic and promotes thoughts that are contradictory to our religion.”
Chairman Central Board of Films Censors Islamabad, Mubashir Hassan, confirmed the news and said, “It (Pari) flouts various sections of the existing rules and code of CBFC. Innumerable dialogues and scenes are against the established religious, social and moral ethos”.
The film was initially passed for screening by the Sindh and Punjab Censor boards with an adult certificate.
However, after the Islamabad CBFC banned the film, the decision has now been reversed.
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The film reportedly contains objectionable sequences where Quranic verses have been used. “The film not only mixed Quranic verses with Hindu chants but also portrayed Muslims in a negative light as they were shown using Quranic verses to do black magic,” sources in the CBFC confirmed.
Following the decision, Nueplex cinemas has apologised to their audience and offered to refund the tickets sold. They posted on their Facebook page:
Further, last week, Indian Motion Pictures Producers’ Association (IMPPA) refused to withdraw its ban on Pakistani artists working in India. Initially, the ban was imposed two years ago, before the release of Fawad Khan’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil and Mahira Khan’s Raees.