Why ban it?

A work of creative expression has been suspended just because it does not sit right with the interests of a self-styled religious group. According to reports, the film "Zindagi Tamasha" made by the renowned director, Sarmad Khoosat, was set to be released on January 24 after the Central Film Censor Board gave it the go-ahead. But then a religious group put brakes on it threatening to launch protest demonstrations because of its unflattering portrayal of a cleric, saying "the characterization of the na'at reader in the film is such that it can cause discomfort to the public and might lead them to deviate from Islam and the Holy Prophet (PBUH)." The statement carries the fallacious assumptions that unlike other mortal beings clerics are infallible, and hence not vulnerable to worldly attractions; furthermore that any perceived or real insult to them is reflective of disrespect for the religion. In reality, there are good and bad people in all segments of society, and films only mirror life.

Unfortunately, successive governments in this country have tried to appease such elements because of their nuisance value. In the present instance, the filmmaker published an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Imran Khan complaining of attempts to stop the release of his film despite being cleared by the Central Censor Board. But to no avail. While the film has been put on hold by Punjab and Sindh governments, the PM's Adviser on Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan tweeted that the film producer had been told to delay the release until the censor board consulted with the Council of Islamic Ideology (notably, the board members include a religious figure) for a critical review of the feature film. Earlier reports said the authorities concerned had also considered inviting a representative of the religious group for reappraisal, which amounted to encouraging the group to define this nation's religio-cultural values and dictate what should or shouldn't be said.

It is worth recalling that it is the same group which last year staged aggressive protest demonstrations all across the country against the Supreme Court decision to release a Christian woman, Aasia Bibi, jailed under death sentence on false blasphemy charges. And its leaders had called for the assassination of the Chief Justice of Pakistan and two other judges who overturned her death sentence, as well as the prime minister, and also urged ouster of the Army chief by his men. Just a few days ago, an anti-terrorism court awarded 86 activists of this group 55 years imprisonment, each, for rioting during that protest. It is hard to comprehend how anyone could forget or forgive such an outrageous behaviour. Instead of adopting an apologetic approach governments at the centre and in the provinces are expected not to allow these people to upend laws of the land or censor creative art. They must not feel free to witch-hunt people for their opinions.