The Bombay High Court on June 18 said that it did not find anything objectionable in the film ‘Hamare Baarah’ and said the movie aims to empower women and uplift their status in the society.
The division bench of judges, Justice B.P. Colabawalla and Justice Firdosh Pooniwalla said that they watched the film starring actor Annu Kapoor and there was neither anything objectionable against the religious text Quran nor against Muslim community, but the film aims at uplifting women in the society. The judges bench said after hearing multiple petitions filed against the film. Calling the first trailer objectionable which is removed now, the court said that the film now has removed certain objectionable scenes. However, the court would impose a cost on the makers of the movie for releasing the film’s trailer even before receiving certification from the Central Board for Film Certification (CBFC).
The court said, “The movie was a “thinking movie” and not the sort where the audience is expected to “keep their brains at home” and only enjoy the movie. The movie is in fact for the upliftment of women. The movie has a Maulana misinterpreting the Quran and in fact one Muslim man objects to the same in the scene. So, this shows that people should apply their mind and not blindly follow such Maulanas. Violation was there vis-a-vis the trailer. So you will have to pay something to a charity of the petitioner’s choice. Cost will have to be paid. This litigation has got the film so much unpaid publicity. We don’t think there is anything in the movie that would incite any violence. If we felt so we would be the first ones to object to it. Indian public is not so gullible or that silly.”
The judges expressed their surprise that the petitioners had made grave statements against the movie without even watching the film and claimed that the film promotes domestic violence. “The movie is about a dominant man and his family,” the bench said.
Earlier this month, a bunch of petitions were filed in the High Court seeking a ban on the film and claiming that the film is targeting a certain community by showing derogatory scenes that also hurt religious sentiments. To this, the court postponed the release of the movie and asked the makers to delete certain objectionable portions from the film and only then release it as per CBFC’s guidance. After this, the petitioners moved the Supreme Court that had put the movie on hold and asked the High Xourt to take an appropriate decision into the matter. The bench agreed with the petitioners that the trailer and posters were objectionable.
Referring to a scene from the movie where the character threatens to kill his daughter and then takes the name of God, the judges bench said, “That may be objectionable. Doing something like this in the name of God may send the wrong signal. Removing this one line will not cause any hindrance to the creative freedom of the maker.”
The judges bench said that if all the concerned parties are on board, agree to the deletion of the objectionable scenes from the film, then it is advised to submit a consent term after which the court would pass an order on Wednesday permitting the release of the movie. Earlier the movie was scheduled to hit the screens on June 7 and then on June 14.
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