Twitter Reactions To Nay Varan Bhat Loncha Kon Nay Koncha Controversy

A controversial Marathi film trailer Nay Varan Bhat Loncha Kon Nay Koncha was released on YouTube but taken down after the National Commission of Women (NCW) objected and called for censorship of the trailer. The film was scheduled to release on January 14, 2022.

The NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma sent a letter to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to censor the trailer, after receiving a complaint from Bharatiya Stree Sakti, which is a women's organisation in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The complaint was on the "open circulation of sexually explicit content involving minors on social media platforms."

The trailer was released on January 10 and according to the people critical of the trailer, it showed women and children in "unacceptable ways." (SheThePeople has not have access to the trailer before it was taken down.)

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The National Commission for Protection of Child (NCPCR) sent a notice stating that the trailer comes under Section 2(c) of the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act. 1986. They stated that it violated section 292 (production, distribution and selling of obscene materials) of the Indian Penal Code. They also mentioned that it violated section 13 (children for pornographic purposes) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence (POCSO) Act, 2012.

This film by Mahesh Manjrekar is based on the story of Late Jayant Pawar and features Prem Dharmadhikari, Chhaya Kadam, Shashank Shende and Kashmera Shah in lead roles. The trailer showed snippets of two teenage boys growing up while facing deprivation and brutality to becoming hardcore criminals.

Twitter Reactions To Nay Varan Bhat Loncha Kon Nay Koncha Controversy

The reason why NCW condemned it was for the circulation of a violent trailer on social media without age restrictions. Children can have their independent social media accounts from the 13 years of age, while we get the right to vote at 18.

Nay Varan Bhat Loncha Kon Nay Koncha Controversy: Creative Liberty Or Not

Many people on social media like Twitter have criticised the film's trailer and its depiction of women and children. Fenil Seta wrote, "I wanted an adult certificate as Nay Varan Bhat Loncha Kon Nay Koncha is a dark and difficult film to watch. I am thankful to the Censor Board for granting it the required certificate."

While Guruprasad Gowda wrote, "It is quite surprising if censor board did give A Certificate, why are violent scenes involving children being shown on social media?"

Others believe that the film shows mill hands' life and chawl culture in a "disgraceful manner." However, the film has not been released yet to conclude that.

The views expressed are the author's own.