As support pours in, Mersal makers stick to their guns

CHENNAI: Barely two days after its release, Mersal has run into controversy with the state president of BJP, Tamilisai Soundarrajan, demanding the removal of two scenes that portray GST and demonetisation in negative light. It was originally believed that the makers would buckle to political pressure and remove the scenes in question, but following all the support that has poured in towards the film from the industry, it appears that the makers may not give in to the demand after all.

Among the first to come to the support of the film was Kamal Haasan who tweeted, “Mersal was certified. Dont re-censor it. Counter criticism with logical response. Don’t silence critics.” The film’s editor, Ruben, joined in by sarcastically asking if he was the actual editor of the film at all, given the clamour over the alleged cuts. Vishal, president of the Tamil Film Producers Council, has since released an offical statement that read, “In Hollywood there are films which mock the President of the United Sta­tes. That is a shining example of democracy. If a political party can censor, that too after release, what is the need for a censor board?”

Director Ram, whose Taramani got an A certificate for showing a female character drinking alcohol, is quite disappointed. “What is the use of a platform like cinema if we can’t express our views? You shouldn’t enforce your opinion and ask for reamoval of scenes. When there are reviews about everything including cinema, why can’t films criticise economic policies? This is dictatorship.”
The CEO of Thenandal Entertainment, Hema Rukmani, clarified her stand by tweeting, “no scenes have been cut or muted”.

No scenes cut or muted in #Mersal Enjoy #Thalapathy swag. Thx to everyone who stood by us. Thx govt.Thx BJP friends Hema Rukmani, CEO, Thenandal Entertainment