Kunal Roy Kapur’s Hotel Milan, which was earlier supposed to hit the screen on October 26, had to postpone the release date due to a delay in getting the CBFC certificate. Now the film, based on anti-Romeo squad and moral policing in Uttar Pradesh will release this week.
Despite submitting the film on time, Director Vishal Mishra had no choice but to comply with the orders of the CBFC. He was also asked to chop off scenes featuring Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. “I argued that it’s already been approved in the trailer that’s running on TV and YouTube. I find it strange that after approving the trailer, you are now asking me to cut it,” says the director adding that some scenes that may be deemed objectionable have been passed but news footage of the UP chief minister had to be axed. “They offered us 15 cuts for U/A but only one cut for A certificate. So we only retained his voice in the film.”
The director believes that making films has become increasingly difficult in today’s times. “If a filmmaker is making one on a cricketer, he cannot make it without his footage. For instance, can I make a film on Sachin or Virat Kholi without his footage?? The film is not about Yogiji but about moral policing and anti-Romeo squad and we have used it in that context,” he concludes.
