You are an adman and a poet. What do you think of your new responsibility, one that is so different from your other roles? Every role, passion, vocation that one pursues comes with a modicum of responsibility — it could be to oneself, to the art form, to the profession or to the society. A driving force has been to contribute my skillset to the issues and causes that concern us as people. I hope that one can make some difference for the better. You’ve got charge of the Central Board for Film Certification (CBFC) at a time when the body has been constantly in news. It’s not about one body. We all are living in complex times. Media, content and technology are converging. The distinction between the creator and consumer is getting blurred. It’s no longer about an active performer and a passive audience. It’s more about an active performer and an active audience. We all are learning how to cope and grow in such an era. In seminal times one can rue the situation or try and do something constructive. I feel that the right to have an opinion gets diluted if one does not come forward to take responsibility. You talked about ushering positive changes in the CBFC. What kind of changes do you have in mind? Any legitimate industry works within certain frameworks and so does a creative industry like films. Let’s not discredit the CBFC. The body and its officials work hard to fulfill their part of the work. The scope to do better is there in all spheres of all industries. As far as I can see, my role is not to micromanage but that of guiding sensibilities — to be more of a sensor according to changing times as well as not lose moorings in the velocity of change. Striking a fine balance is always a challenge worth attempting. Even though we have the Cinematograph Act, 1952, how much scope do you think the CBFC chief has to bring about changes? How much do these changes depend on the chairperson? As you’ve implied, it’s a defined canvas but one hopes to paint it well. All I can say is that I will try and bring in my sensibility and experience on board and sincerely make efforts to bring about more points of view. And I will learn as things evolve. It’s not about one person, it’s important that all stakeholders of this ecosystem collaborate to move forward. The demand for CBFC to function as a certification body and not as a ‘censor board’ has been growing in the film industry. What’s your stand? Sure, there are views that content should be certified only and the audience should decide what is good and bad for them. I can understand that. But we can ensure that those not in an empowered state to decide are kept in mind. Say for example, children and some other vulnerable ends of our society. I believe in the power of informed choice. And for that to come into play it’s important that there are no gaps in audience awareness and information given to them about the kind of content being presented. Accountability and responsibility should be from all ends if we have to progress as a society. You talked about taking people’s opinion into consideration. How crucial is that in the field of cinema? When one creates for people at large, one can’t do it in suspension. It has to be more symbiotic. Let me digress a bit into opinions and points of view. I have always believed that creativity is a vantage point, the same piece of reality can be viewed from a particular vantage point and that’s what gives you a unique and authentic voice. I have never shied away from taking points of view on my work and tried to see it with a different eye. This eye is actually important, let me try and elaborate on this. If you have cultural filter of a certain kind, you react to a certain image with that filter, which is the sum total of your visual library, your experiences and your sensorial learning. A woman walking from a distance with something red visible on her forehead, for someone who is exposed to India, would probably imply tradition, ‘sindoor’, ‘married’, but for someone who doesn’t have that filter, to them from a distance she may look like a lady with a wound and a trickle of blood. In the absence of a cultural eye, your Organism’s Eye is what makes you decipher. Organism’s Eye is primal, it works in conjunction with the baser instincts, that’s why a culturally-coded film may not cut across the globe but a film like Jurassic Park does. We need to be cognisant of multiple viewpoints. What is your take on the Shyam Benegal Committee recommendations? Suggestions from a person of Shyam Benegal’s repute are bound to be valuable. The very fact that a committee was formed gives tremendous hope to all that inputs given are going to be viewed with seriousness. The betterment of the industry and society is what we all strive for. Your appointment was mostly welcomed by people from the industry. Have you interacted with them? I am thankful for the faith shown by the fraternity and well-wishers. On a lighter note, the messages ranged from congratulations to commiserations! I have begun meeting key stakeholders and hope to have more in-depth interactions in the coming days. What kind of challenges do you see ahead? Varied and plentiful.
