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Bollywood Is Totally Rallying In Support Of #UdtaPunjab, One Tweet At A Time

Bollywood Is Totally Rallying In Support Of #UdtaPunjab, One Tweet At A Time
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The Udta Punjab controversy with the Censor Board is becoming bigger by the day, with no solution in sight. While Anurag Kashyap, in an interview with India Today, took a direct dig at Minister of Information and Broadcasting Arun Jaitley by saying he was 'disappointed in him,' other people from the fraternity too are voicing their angst against the Censor Board's high-handedness.

This time, it is apparent to many that Pahlaj Nihalani has dug his own grave by stepping too far. Playing the moral guardian may have worked for him thus far, but Bollywood is sending out a strong message making it clear that it is not going to bow down to CBFC's pressure.

Here's what some of the actors, directors, writers are saying in support of Udta Punjab, which has gone nearly 89 cuts but no formal letter that says so, effectively putting the film in limbo.

Arjun Kapoor said it the way it is.

U know a lot of people in our fraternity speak up for other causes, it's time we stood up for our own. #UdtaPunjab deserves a proper release

— Arjun Kapoor (@arjunk26) June 7, 2016

Alia Bhatt quoted Malala.

Karan Johar minced no words.

#UdtaPunjab speaks of the reality of our times....censoring reality amounts to delusion.....the fraternity has to stand by what's right!!

— Karan Johar (@karanjohar) June 6, 2016

Farhan Akhtar had this lassi analogy.

Power is the most dangerous addiction of all & someone in the CBFC seems to be tripping hard on Lassi in the Sky with Diamonds. #UdtaPunjab

— Farhan Akhtar (@FarOutAkhtar) June 7, 2016

Well, this too.

#Udtapunjab known for better things like love,peace,bhaichara,culture,respect,freedom fighters,spotsmans,music,I m a proud PUNJABI nd INDIAN

— Harbhajan Singh (@harbhajan_singh) June 7, 2016

Alia's father, Mahesh Bhatt, weighed in.

The Censors says I am the one who says the last sentence on UDTA PUNJAB .The nation can say what it wants our verdict is going to stick.

— Mahesh Bhatt (@MaheshNBhatt) June 7, 2016

And so did ace Tweeter and full-time douche Ram Gopal Varma.

Govt which wants to ban Udta Punjab shud realise that by banning a Udta film they actually trying to ban Udta truth

— Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) June 6, 2016

CBFC Board member Ashoke Pandit has been vocal about his criticism toward Pahlaj Nihalani.

Rahul Gandhi should google & find out as to how many films have bn banned by his family & how they hv treated the #FilmIndustry. #UdtaPunjab

— Ashoke Pandit (@ashokepandit) June 7, 2016

Deepak Dobriyal pretty much nailed it with this cool clip.

Udaane ka kaam to mera hai. #UdtaPunjabpic.twitter.com/MqMwn0If8C

— Deepak Dobriyal (@deepakdobriyal) June 7, 2016

While lyricist Varun Grover had an interesting suggestion.

Hansal Mehta, who's made films like Shahid and Aligarh which have often courted controversies with the Censor Board said:

What is this I'm hearing about #UdtaPunjab? Makes me very, very angry.

— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) June 6, 2016

Can the truth defame a state? #UdtaPunjabCensored

— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) June 6, 2016

Delusion or collusion? Why is the establishment so scared of films that mirror reality? #UdtaPunjabCensored

— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) June 6, 2016

Nikhil Advani too showed solidarity with Anurag and co.

Are we (censor board) not reading the disclaimer at the beginning of films. It's fictional na? Hmmm.., maybe it isn't? #UdtaPunjabCensored

— Nikkhil Advani (@nikkhiladvani) June 7, 2016

And so did Soha Ali Khan.

Anyone who says that drugs are not a problem in punjab is either unaware,complicit or has malafide intention #UdtaPunjab@_phoenix_fire_ 👍🏼

— soha ali khan (@sakpataudi) June 6, 2016

All the love that's been pouring in has made Shahid 'Tommy Singh' Kapoor very, very happy.

Overwhelmed with all the support #UdtaPunjab#freedomofexpression#drugsdimaadi

— Shahid Kapoor (@shahidkapoor) June 7, 2016

While all the support is pretty great and may lead to some change, a Tweet by veteran journalist Shekhar Gupta reminded us of the silence of the biggies.

Brilliantly & bravely said. Why the supermen silent on #UdtaPunjab: @SrBachchan@iamsrk@aamir_khan@BeingSalmanKhanhttps://t.co/No0CX0ubV9

— Shekhar Gupta (@ShekharGupta) June 7, 2016

Also See On HuffPost:

"Birth of a Nation" (1915)

Censorship in film

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.