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Akshay Kumar, who stars in the film. Rajanish Kakade

Filmmakers order to cut Bollywood scenes that poked fun at lawyers

The ruling was over the comedy-drama JollyLLB 2.

AN INDIAN COURT has ordered filmmakers to cut four scenes from a forthcoming Bollywood movie after ruling that they show lawyers in a bad light.

India’s Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had cleared comedy-drama Jolly LLB 2, which stars Akshay Kumar, for release but the Bombay High Court intervened, the Press Trust of India reported.

The case is an unusual twist on censorship in the country, where courts have instructed India’s censorship board to reinstate scenes that it has deleted — not the other way round.

“We had no objection with the film and gave it a certificate. It’s a movie for entertainment and is fiction,” CBFC chairman Pahlaj Nihalani told AFP, adding that he was waiting to receive the court’s order.

Jolly LLB 2 tells the story of an awkward lawyer played by Kumar, who takes on a high-profile case in a satirical look at India’s legal system.

Four cuts

Advocate Ajay Kumar Waghmare filed a petition claiming that certain shots mocked lawyers and disrespected India’s judicial system. He called for them to be cut and for “LLB” (a legal degree) to be dropped from the movie’s title.

The Press Trust of India reported that Mumbai’s top court had agreed with the petition and ruled that the film, due for release last Friday, could only be screened if four cuts were made.

Newspapers said these included one showing a scared judge hiding behind a chair and another in which Kumar’s character is seen jumping on a dais as he instructs his client to throw a shoe at the judge.

The movie also apparently shows lawyers playing cards and dancing in court, according to The Hindu newspaper.

The Bombay High Court’s stance is a far cry from its ruling of June last year when it overturned 12 cuts that the CBFC had made to Udta Punjab, a film depicting drug addiction. It told the film board not to be “over-sensitive”.

India’s censors have a long history of barring movies and cutting scenes, including those deemed too racy or capable of causing religious offence, and filmmakers accuse them of intolerance.

In 2015 the CBFC blocked the release of a toned-down version of Fifty Shades of Grey and deemed two James Bond kissing scenes unsuitable for an Indian audience.

- © AFP, 2017

Read: Bollywood producers arrive, hoping to repeat success of ‘Luas fight’ blockbuster> 

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    Mute shrew
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    May 27th 2013, 7:07 AM

    Who buys counterfeit DVDs or CDs anymore?

    69
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    Mute Andy Cleary
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    May 27th 2013, 9:42 AM

    People that have crap broadband.

    28
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    Mute Ciarán Kenny
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    May 27th 2013, 8:02 AM

    Who buys counterfeit stethoscopes?! Pictured to the right in the article.

    67
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    Mute Ronan Stokes
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    May 27th 2013, 8:52 AM

    Quacks.

    24
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    Mute Eamonn Bolger
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    May 27th 2013, 9:32 AM

    No counterfeit Government seized?

    7
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    Mute Alan McNamara
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    May 27th 2013, 12:40 PM

    Doctor Nick Riviera

    21
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    Mute JJ Rossi
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    May 28th 2013, 12:06 AM

    Doctors probably, it’s not just simple medical equipment like that either, things like dentists tools and even X-ray machines are made by counterfeiters. The latter giving hundreds of times more radiation than the proper machine.

    1
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    Mute John Campbell
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    May 27th 2013, 7:10 AM

    Sure haven’t we got counterfeit government? What’s new?

    46
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    Mute Tim Kennedy
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    May 27th 2013, 7:17 AM

    Yawn

    40
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    Mute Continent Simian
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    May 27th 2013, 7:31 AM

    Yer ma is counterfeit.

    57
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    Mute OU812
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    May 27th 2013, 7:05 AM

    There’s counterfeit condoms (Durex) on the streets which, while sounding funny, is very worrying.

    Apparently porous & lubricated with vegetable oil.

    44
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    Mute Ciaran O HUrmoltaigh
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    May 27th 2013, 9:03 AM

    You would have to be hard up to have to resort to buying those.

    34
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    Mute Galwaybay
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    May 27th 2013, 6:55 AM

    How many of these goods were stolen back from revenue by the criminals like what happen in Dundalk sat night.

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    Mute sean
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    May 27th 2013, 8:10 AM

    what happened in dundalk ?

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    Mute Galwaybay
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    May 27th 2013, 8:20 AM

    Well according to rte news laundered diesel was seized during the week. Apparently the criminal broke in an army barracks where it was being stored and stole the tanker back with all the diesel still on board

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    Mute Eileen Dover
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    May 27th 2013, 8:35 AM

    Took some balls to carry this out, just read it on the news.

    13
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    Mute sean
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    May 27th 2013, 9:07 AM

    dundalk is a great place to live ….you gotta love Da-town :)

    15
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    Mute Eamonn Bolger
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    May 27th 2013, 9:33 AM

    That is a complete and utter joke. After all that effort?

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    Mute sean
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    May 27th 2013, 12:12 PM

    must be worth a lot of Doe , otherwise they wouldn’t have bothered going to the hassle of robbing it back ,
    from a defence forces barracks(they broke down the get , walked in took the truck and drove out) ………… says alot about the defence forces really

    11
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    Mute Gerard
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    May 27th 2013, 12:18 PM

    Did they not hop the wall, start the lorry and then drive through the gate? Hate to be the soldiers on security detail when this happened?

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    Mute Martin St John
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    May 27th 2013, 4:27 PM

    Geard.. Ever heard of ‘back-handers? Or , turn a blind eye !!

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    Mute Gerard
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    May 27th 2013, 5:05 PM

    Martin, I know the barracks well. There’s CCTV covering the ground. They didn’t just walk in the front gate!

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    Mute James Lyons
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    May 27th 2013, 9:18 AM

    I’m just waiting for this picture to appear in my timeline with “share this photo to be in with a chance of winning all these prizes”

    34
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    Mute Dylan Ryan
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    May 27th 2013, 1:35 PM

    Every thing is made in China……..Apart from babies, they’re made in the VaChina

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    Mute CAPT. ADEBAYO FLYNN
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    May 27th 2013, 9:19 AM

    I sell counterfeit counterfeits of 90′s boy band calendars. I’m doing PRETTY good.

    14
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    Mute Mumble Mumble
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    May 27th 2013, 10:55 AM

    The Chinese; a great bunch of lads.

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    Mute Erica Corcoran
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    May 27th 2013, 8:58 AM

    I’ve heard some people report that legitimate Chinese manufactured mobile phones are being seized as counterfeit goods.

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    Mute Andrew Matheson
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    May 27th 2013, 1:10 PM

    Is Alan shatter’s Rolex there too??

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    Mute tax slave
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    May 27th 2013, 9:03 AM

    I bought a Nokia phone once from a shop . Only after i got home did i notice the the name was spelled different and was a peace of crap. Made in China

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    Mute Randy Fisher
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    May 27th 2013, 9:08 AM

    Everything is made in China now

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    Mute sean
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    May 27th 2013, 12:13 PM

    the more the ordinary people get ripped off buy the gov ,
    the more they will rely on the black market .

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    Mute Kerry Blake
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    May 27th 2013, 10:36 AM

    What happened to my comment?

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    Mute JJ Rossi
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    May 28th 2013, 12:08 AM

    Nothing, there it is ^

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