Madras Café banned in Tamil Nadu but screening in Sri Lanka soon

John Abraham starrer and Soojit Sarkar’s directed‘Madras Cafeé’ faces the heat of the Tamil Nadu activists and political parties. The film will see the light of the day today in every part of India except Tamil Nadu. The film is banned in Tamil Nadu for showing the LTTE group in bad light, but found place at a movie hall in Colombo. The pro-Tamil group demanded delete of some objectionable scenes but the leading actor of the film John refused to do so. He claimed that if censor board has not objection in any scene of the film then why should he delete those scenes. The film is set in the late 1980s and early 1990s and includes the time when Mr Gandhi was assassinated by Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels in 1991 at an election rally in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

A spokesperson for Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, the producers of Madras Café, told that the movie was released in Colombo after a cinema regulatory body there suggested a minor 10-second cut. But he did not reveal what it was about. “There were no apprehensions over Madras Café’s release. We secured its approval straightaway as it is neutral at all levels,” said the source. He, however, added that not a single theatre owner in the State was willing to screen the film as they were scared stiff over its repercussions. Director Shoojit Sircar describes the film, which will be released across India and many parts of the world on 23 August, as "an espionage thriller", but concedes that it draws from real-life events.

Scenes in Madras Café

“Theatre owners are worried that should the movie release, the halls would be vandalised. So they are not willing to take any risks. Our marketing personnel are in constant touch with them,” he added. Madras Café was slated to release in 200 screens in TN and Kerala on Friday.It now seems that the release of its Hindi and Tamil versions might be deferred to next week. Asserting that the movie was non-derogatory, he pointed out that the Hindi prints were certified U/A more than a month ago. The intent behind releasing it in Tamil, was to let people know more about the situation then. All allegations leveled against the movie are baseless and specious arguments, he averred. “There is no reference to Malayalees as suggested by some groups,” he said.

The movie’s overseas release, too, was marred with hostilities, ranging from bomb threats and opposition by outfits. Movie halls screening Madras Cafe in UK reportedly received bomb threats – pro-Tamil outfits had expressed displeasure at its screening in Singapore. ‘Madras Café’ is the third film in a row to face a ban in Tamil Nadu this year. Earlier, Kamal Hassan’s ‘Vishwaroopam’ and Vijay’s 'Thalaivaa' were objected to be released in the state.