Bombay High Court Clears Yogi Adityanath Biopic, Slams CBFC for Wrongful Censorship

The Bombay High Court cleared the release of Ajey: The Untold Story of a Yogi, a film inspired by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s life. The court delivered this decision after the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) repeatedly refused to certify the movie, demanded multiple cuts, and cited “obscenity.”

A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale personally watched the film in court before announcing their order. They said, “There is no obscenity. Absolutely nothing. Even considering today’s OTT standards, this is very mild.” The court declared that the CBFC wrongly withheld clearance and directed the film to release without any cuts.

Why the Court Overruled the CBFC

The CBFC first flagged 29 scenes and later demanded 21 deletions. Even after the filmmakers made changes, the board refused certification on August 17. The board also forced the filmmakers to produce a no-objection certificate (NOC) from a private individual, but the court clarified that no law supports such a requirement.

Senior advocate Ravi Kadam, who represented the producers, argued that the CBFC acted “arbitrarily, unreasonably, and against the Cinematograph Act, 1952 and the new Certification Rules, 2024.” The judges agreed and said the board “failed to uphold natural justice from the very beginning.”

When CBFC’s counsel, senior advocate Ram Apte, claimed that the film contained obscenity and could defame the UP Chief Minister, the court asked if he had actually watched the movie. He admitted he had not, which further weakened the CBFC’s stand.

Court’s Final Observations

The court made it clear that the CBFC does not have the duty to protect an individual’s privacy. The judges said if anyone feels defamed, that person can approach the court directly. They also pointed out that the film already includes a disclaimer stating it is a work of fiction inspired by real events. The judges only asked the filmmakers to add the phrase “creative freedom” to strengthen the clarification.

About the Film

Samrat Cinematics India Pvt. Ltd. produced Ajey: The Untold Story of a Yogi, and Anant Joshi plays the lead role. The movie draws inspiration from Shantanu Gupta’s book The Monk Who Became Chief Minister and takes its title from Yogi Adityanath’s birth name, Ajay Mohan Singh Bisht.

The filmmakers planned a worldwide release in five languages, but censorship battles delayed it. With the High Court’s order, they can now release the film freely without cuts.

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