Prithviraj Sukumaran who plays the role of Vardha Raja Mannar in Salaar: CeaseFire speaks about the violence shown in films like Salaar and Animal. He says only Censor Board is responsible for judging a film for its violence, not the artistes.
Mumbai: Salaar and Animal have been released this year to solid Box Office appreciation. Despite all the excessive violence in the film and the criticism that followed, both films have managed to impress the masses at the ticket window. And now, actor Prithviraj Sukumaran has something to add to how he or anyone associated with these films has no moral responsibility towards showing such goriness to the audience or worse, making it look cool for them. In an interview recently, Prithviraj, who plays an important role in Prashant Neel’s Salaar: CeaseFire, spoke about the violence in the films and said only the Censor Board is responsible for editing or restricting the viewing of these scenes.
While speaking to News18, the popular actor mentioned that he and other artistes should have the freedom to show whatever they want to and it’s up to the Censor Board to limit its viewing by providing a suitable rating to the film. He said, “Our responsibility as a filmmaker is to make sure that we submit it to the Censor Board. How we make the film should be left to us. The audience has already been told about a film’s certification because it has violence or nudity. Censorship should happen in the exhibition sector to keep a tab on who goes to the theatre and who gets to see it. As an artiste, I’ve always believed that we should have the liberty of making what we want to. Who sees the material should be regulated as it is (sic).”
Salaar is like Game of Thrones
Prithviraj also described the violence in his film as creative. He compared Salaar: CeaseFire which is all dark and grim, to the international HBO series ‘Game of Thrones’, also boasting the same goriness and power conflict. The Lucifer actor defended the violence in the Prabhas starrer and explained, “The violence in Salaar is very much a character in the plot and it’s a screenplay instrument to further the drama. Without the violence, Salaar won’t be what it is. And I keep comparing it to Game Of Thrones because Salaar is very much a drama (sic).” He added that despite all its violence and action, Salaar is essentially about ‘relationships’. He said the film showcases ‘intricate character dynamics’ and is a ‘beautifully written drama’.
Prithviraj Sukumar defends Animal against its violence and misogyny
When asked about Animal and the kind of violence it glorifies, the Malayalam actor said he hasn’t watched the film yet but he believes in the idea of full liberty being given to the filmmaker for presenting his/ her story the way they want to. “I haven’t watched Animal yet and so, I can’t comment on it. But, because I’m a filmmaker also, I’m of the opinion that as a filmmaker if you think you need to shoot graphic violence to be able to say the story the way you want to say it, you should have the liberty to do it,” he explained.
Criticise Censor Board, not the makers!
For Prithviraj, one should have the liberty of making the film that they want to show to the audience and then it’s with the Censor Board to regulate the content and certify the film for suitable viewing. This means no shared responsibility for content between the makers and the artistes. This means if the content of the film is gory, misogynistic or problematic in any sense, the onus lies with CBFC, and not the ones who conceived it, created it, presented it and acted in it. Your thoughts?
