Bubblegum universe

Censor Board chief Anupam Kher8217;s empire has expanded considerably. His predecessors had to satisfy their scissor-happy instincts by sni...

Censor Board chief Anupam Kher8217;s empire has expanded considerably. His predecessors had to satisfy their scissor-happy instincts by snipping away four-letter words in big screen releases. Kher, in contrast, will preside over a larger terrain. For, to him has fallen the task of cocooning the country8217;s television audiences in perpetual innocence. The information and broadcasting minister has decreed that henceforth nothing that8217;s inappropriate to be reeled before 18-year-old eyes shall be broadcast on the small screen. Woe betide the cable operator providing a channel carrying a film, music video or even a promo unworthy of U certification.

Thank heavens! In this wicked new world of double entendre lyrics and graphic depictions of sexuality and violence, someone like Kher has reinvented himself to uphold 8220;Indian values8221;! No longer shall an innocuous hour of surfing channels carry the fear of unexpectedly chancing upon a scantily clad teeny bopper, never mind that we always have the option to skip on to another network anyway. No longer shall our hours of relaxation be imperilled by accidentally tuning into a disturbing exploration of fragmenting relationships in films like American Beauty, never mind that they may have been honoured with prestigious international awards and radically changed our ways of seeing and understanding the world around us. No, Anupam Kher is around to stroll the dangerous outposts of the visual imagination and protect us in our bubblegum, U-certificate universe. Now if only he would take this wonderful agenda to its logical conclusion. If only he would secure this nanny state of mind by sifting out all that explosive 8220;adult8221; stuff on the unwieldy World Wide Web. If only he8217;d appoint his able lieutenants at our video and DVD parlours to tell us what8217;s appropriate for our moral well-being. If only he8217;d properly police our minds, if only he8217;d certify all those classics on our children8217;s bookshelves driving them to rebellion against family, religion and state.

Seriously, if only our moral police would understand that censorship loses its value when it8217;s instead used to limit options, that its potency lies in spare use in the most extreme of cases. Censorship can be an enabling tool when it is used to categorise creative projects, thereby leaving it to parents and guardians to determine what8217;s appropriate for them and their wards. This self-regulation by the viewer is especially important amidst an information revolution where data and entertainment are pouring in, non-stop and often raw. Television is usually the first source of news and entertainment for most people, especially the young. By playing nanny to them and denying them the opportunity to learn discretion the censors could do them grave harm.