Indian censors have banned blockbuster erotic romance Fifty Shades of Grey from cinemas despite producers having removed all scenes of nudity, reports Reuters.
Officials objected to salacious content in the film’s dialogue, according to sources at studio Universal. Producers had voluntarily edited the film to tone down sex scenes, but ultimately to no avail. Conservative India follows Malaysia, Kenya, Indonesia and several countries in the Middle East in banning Sam Taylor-Johnson’s big screen adaptation of EL James’s bestselling erotica.
Shravan Kumar, chief executive of India’s Central Board of Film Certification, did not give reasons for the failure to provide Fifty Shades of Grey with a certificate. But he said Universal had the right to appeal, and that process is understood to be under way.
Taylor-Johnson’s film is expected to pass $500m at the global box office this week, an impressive figure given that it is unlikely to receive a theatrical release in conservative China, the world’s second-largest film market.
India’s censor board is currently experiencing a period of upheaval: its chairperson and several members resigned in protest at a government reversal of the decision to ban contentious religious film MSG: The Messenger of God in January. Director Pahlaj Nihalani, who has links to the ruling Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), was installed as a replacement, leading to concerns from the Indian film community that a new era of conservatism and nationalism might be looming.
The new board’s attempt to introduce an outright ban on various words and actions in the movies was torpedoed last month following a backlash. The proposed list of banned subjects included numerous profane terms, any mention of Mumbai via its colonial name of Bombay and depictions of violence against women and “glorified bloodshed”.
