LUCKNOW: Shankaracharya of Jyotishpeeth, Swami Avimukteshwaranand Sarswati has set up a ‘Dharam Censor Board’ to review and analyse the content of films and web series on OTT hurting religious sentiments in the name of entertainment.
The board, the constitution of which was announced in Prayagraj, last week, was set up in Haridwar on Sunday.
The seer said that the central office of the 'Dharam Censor Board' also known as ‘Dharam Shodhan Sewalaya’ would be inaugurated in Delhi on January 15. The guidelines would be released on Magh Mela premises of Prayagraj on January 19. The censor board has come up amid the raging controversy over the song ‘Besharam Rang….’ of Shahrukh Khan and Deepika Padukone starrer ‘Pathan’. The movie
is set for theatrical release on January 25.
Significantly, a raging controversy is going on over the Pathan song which features Deepika Padukone in saffron attire. A number of right-wing organisations objected to it while threatening to boycott the film in theatres.
According to sources, the 10-member Dharam Censor Board would have its offices in different states. According to Swami Avimukteshwaranand, the Dharam Censor Board would delve deep into the content of films, web series, TV serials, and the school curriculum being offered. “It will also look into the characters, their dialogues and delivery, colours being used and sequences being shown in the name of showbiz.
The Board will recommend action on finding the distortion of content related to Hinduism, Vedas and Puranas in the films and serials,” said the seer. He added that the board would also act under the ambit of law against those found mocking the Sanatan way of life or chanting the mantras wrong.
The seer said that the board would also help the filmmakers, who will be interested in making religion-based films, with content and script. Swami Avimukteshwaranand has been appointed the patron of the Dharam Censor Board and Suresh Manchanda its media in charge.
The other Board members include a senior lawyer of the Supreme Court Dr PN Mishra, Sanatan Dharm preacher Swami Chakrapani, litterateur Dr Neerja Madhav, actor Mansi Pandey, vice president, UP Film Development Corporation, Tarun Rathi, social activist Capt Arvind Singh Bhadauria, Sanskrit litterateur Preeti Shukla, an expert on Sanatan Dharm, Dr Gargi Pundit and former director of Archaeological
Survey of India (ASI), Dr Dharmveer.