The Censor Board of Film Certification has objected to references to the Bhagavad Gita and the Holy Quran in Arjun Kapoor’s upcoming film India’s Most Wanted.
The film teaser had courted controversy for featuring a scene where a terrorist justifies the killing of innocents by referring to a line spoken by Lord Krishna in the Gita.
According to a source, the makers were set to release a follow-up teaser where Kapoor’s character is seen responding to the terrorist by contending that the killing of innocents is forbidden in the Quran. However, when the new promo was submitted to the censor board, the statutory body objected to both dialogues and asked for their deletion from the film. As a result, the makers did not release the new promo, though the clip was leaked online.
The CBFC had allowed the first teaser, containing the Gita references, to be released. “Not only does this dialogue make a powerful statement on how no religion preaches violence, it also shows how the film is not biased towards any ideology, but is highlighting a true story,” the source said, responding to the CBFC’s claim that the scene might incite religious violence.
Directed by Raj Kumar Gupta, India’s Most Wanted is slated for a May 24 release, and is co-produced by Fox Star Studios and Raapchik Films.