'Julie 2 is a clean adult, family movie'
5 Sep 2017 4:19 PM GMT
Mumbai: Pahlaj Nihalani, who grabbed many a headline for trimming films during his tenure as CBFC chief, has turned distributor for an upcoming erotic-thriller, Julie 2, which he described as a "very clean, adult movie". Full page posters of the film, showing a woman on a sandy beach with a hat covering her face and an open magazine placed strategically across her body, were placed in major newspapers today.
Nihalani attended the trailer launch of the movie – his first public event after being replaced by Prasoon Joshi – and was bombarded with questions about his decision to back a film like Julie 2, a genre he has vehemently objected to in the past.
Asked how many cuts he would've given to the film if he had been in his old job, Nihalani told reporters, "It's not my job anymore. Let the designated person decide how many cuts it should have or not. It is a very clean, adult movie."
"If I was there, I would not have given it any cut and given an 'A' certificate. It doesn't have obscenity or any cuss words. It's a complete, adult, family film." Asked if he was no longer "sanskaari" for distributing a film like Julie 2 he said, "This is my business. This is an adult film and I am asking for an 'A' certificate only, not for 'U' or 'U/A'.
"I am 'sanskaari', it's in our mitti. India is a place where nothing is bigger than 'sanskaar'. I was, am and will be this (sanskaari)." The erotic thriller, directed by Deepak Shivdasani, marks the Hindi film debut of South actor Raai Laxmi. It is the sequel to Shivdasani's earlier film Julie", which featured Neha Dhupia.
Criticism of the movie during the launch event did not go down well with Shivdasani, who intervened and slammed the media judging it way before its release. When a reporter asked Nihalani how he could back such a film, the director shouted, "Excuse me. I want to say something before you put your questions."
Shivdasani became visibly aggressive and said, "Don't judge a book by its cover." It was only after the media asked him to lower his voice that the director calmed down. Nihalani said he had no right to comment on how the film would be viewed by the CBFC but insisted he won't target the board to garner publicity.
"CBFC will decide what they want to do, but we will not use the board as a platform to get publicity for our film."
Calling himself a "soldier", Nihalani said he has never made or backed films that have landed in trouble with the CBFC. "This is my journey, I am a soldier. I'll fight it till the end."
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