Press Trust of India
|
April 19, 2012 00:38 IST
(New Delhi)
The Delhi High Court directed the Centre to explain the reasons for rejecting the movie Ekhon Nedekha Nadir
Xipaare, as non-Assamese at this year's National Film Awards
despite it being cleared by the Censor Board as Assamese.
A division bench of Acting Chief Justice A K Sikri and
Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw issued notice to Information and
Broadcasting Ministry, Directorate of Film Festival and
chairperson and jury of the 59th National Film Festival and
sought their response by next week.
"We would like to know the basis on which the film was
rejected as Assamese film for the 59th film festival 2011,"
the bench said while hearing a PIL filed by enajori.com, a
society to promote films, seeking direction to set aside the
decision of jury members to reject the film.
The film, directed by Bidyut Kotoky, stars veteran Victor
Banerjee, Sanjay Suri, Raj Zutshi, Priti Jhangiani and Bidita
Bag among others. It also has a Hindi version As the River
Flows.
The National Awards were announced in March and the
distribution ceremony will be held in May.
In his writ petition, the petitioner alleged that by
rejecting the film in the regional language, the jury deprived
the Assamese film industry from participating in the
competition.
The court asked the petitioner to implead the National
Film Development Corporation (NFDC) as party in the PIL.
According to the PIL, the film was rejected on the ground
that some dialogues were in Hindi and English due to which
this could not be considered as Assamese film.
The petition further said the jury members selected a
film as best in the regional language category (I Am) which
was shot at various places in Kashmir, Kolkata, Bangalore and
Mumbai and the dialogues were in Hindi, English and Kashmiri
but Ekhon Nedekha Nadir Xipaare was not considered as
Assamese which is "illegal".