Veteran Tamil filmmaker P. Bharathiraja warned the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in a February letter that the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) should not appoint politically affiliated people to its advisory panels. Mr. Bharathiraja was writing to the Ministry in his capacity as the president of the Tamil Film Active Producers Association (TFAPA).
In the letter, obtained by The Hindu, Mr. Bharathiraja said, “We recommend that to maintain neutrality and objectivity of the board, a member of the advisory panel [both in examining committee and revising committee] should not be affiliated to any political party, directly or indirectly, as it is bringing in a bias during the certification process otherwise.”
He added, “A board member appointed must be a neutral person, eminent and known for his achievements in writing, … filmmaking, film production or in any important field of film production, literature or arts. Businesspersons or persons with political affiliation should be avoided as a member.”
