Tamil actor Vishal, who has accused the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) of extorting Rs 6.5 lakh from him, in order to greenlight the Hindi version of his film Mark Antony, has received support from the industry and I&B Ministry. The central Information and Broadcasting Ministry announced on Friday that it initiated an inquiry into the claims by Tamil actor Vishal. The official handle of the ministry posted on X (formerly known as Twitter), “The issue of corruption in CBFC brought forth by actor @VishalKOfficial is extremely unfortunate. The Government has zero tolerance for corruption and the strictest action will be taken against anyone found involved.”
“A senior officer from the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has been deputed to Mumbai to conduct an inquiry today itself. We request everyone to cooperate with the Ministry, by providing information about any other instance of harassment by CBFC at jsfilms.inb@nic.in,” it added.
The issue of corruption in CBFC brought forth by actor @VishalKOfficial is extremely unfortunate.
The Government has zero tolerance for corruption and strictest action will be taken against anyone found involved. A senior officer from the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting…
— Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (@MIB_India) September 29, 2023
CBFC member Ashoke Pandit demanded a CBI inquiry into the matter. He told a news website, “On behalf of IFTDA (Indian Film and Television Directors’ Association), we are writing a letter to Prasoon Joshi and demanding a CBI inquiry on these charges. The people who have taken the money are not employees of CBFC, so whoever the money was given to has to be investigated.”
Vishal had mentioned that the payment was done in two parts as it was Rs 3 lakh for screening and Rs 3.5 lakh for just giving it certification. Lodging his complaint, the Tamil actor-director has issued a strongly worded statement. He appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to immediately crack down on this whole corruption scandal. “#Corruption being shown on silver screen is fine. But not in real life. Can’t digest. Especially in government offices. And even worse happeningin #CBFC Mumbai office. Had to pay 6.5 lacs for my film #MarkAntonyHindi version. 2 transactions. 3 Lakhs for screening and 3.5 Lakhs for certificate. Never faced this situation ever in my career”.
He added: “Had no option but to pay the concerned mediator #Menaga coz too much was at stake since the movie released today. Bringing this to the notice of Hon Chief Minister of Maharashtra and my Hon PM Narendra Modiji. Doing this is not for me but for future producers. NOT HAPPENING. My hard earned money gone for corruption ??? No way. Evidence down for all to hear. Hope truth prevails as always. GB (sic)”.
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