Unfazed By The Ban, Controversial Film 'Unfreedom' Was Screened In Mumbai!

'Unfreedom', director Raj Amit Kumar's hugely controversial film was banned in India a while ago. Why? Well, since it deals with sensitive issues like homosexuality and torture of a pacifist Muslim intellectual, our censor board thought it may evoke 'unnatural' passion in the audience!

Well, whatever that means! But the latest development on the movie is that despite the ban, Kumar recently held a private screening for the students at IIT Mumbai, and he's about to show it in the US too. According to reports, the film was much appreciated by the students. Kumar was quoted as saying, ¡°The screening was a private one, for students of the IIT only. There were 400 students present and everybody was fully engaged and absolutely loved the film. The Q&A lasted longer than an hour.¡±

Ironically, he's allowed to publicly screen his film in the US, "Any film can be screened publicly in the US without an American censor certificate. My 'Unfreedom' has the freedom to be screened fearlessly on American soil. But not in my own land."

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After this screening, he was curious why the Censor Board thought that young adults can't deal with the issues shown in the film. ¡°The Censor decides that these kids don¡¯t know how to handle tough subjects and films! Our young breed is very aware of the world and its reality. They don¡¯t need to protected and mollycoddled.¡± He's now taking the movie to a screening in New York on May 29.

The movie was banned by Indian censor board just days after India voted against gay rights for United Nation employees. It is the story of a young girl who resists a forced arranged marriage to unite with her lesbian partner. The nudity and lovemaking scenes of the female protagonists irked the Board.

A parallel story line revolves around a liberal Muslim kidnapped by a terrorist. According to the director, the film was refused by both the Examining Committee and the Revising Committee. "They plainly told me that after watching the film, Hindu and Muslims will start fighting and will ignite unnatural passions. I was aghast as my film is not provocative." he had told the Mumbai Mirror in March this year.