7 inspiring movies ‘they’ don’t want you to see! Links to full movies in the article!

‘They’ is a very ubiquitous term which can mean the government, the society, the corporations, organized religion, authoritative figures that abuse their power & spoon-feed you like your nanny about what you should consume & what is too much (read, too truthful) for you to digest! However, here the pronoun ‘they’ mainly represents the oh-so-great Censor Board of India.

While we talk about the bans in India in this week’s deep trip series, it is important to browse through some powerful pieces of cinema which did not see the light of the day despite of the influential messages they carried. The list is endless and if you check the wiki for banned movies in India, you would be served with a list of over 70 films right from 1959 to 2015. However, we would not consider mainstream derogatory movies like Kya Kool Hai Hum 3 & Mastizaade in this list. Mentioned here is only a list of the movies which I personally consider as outstanding work of art and should be cherished by all. Watch ‘em before they get banned from the links I have mentioned here and before this article itself gets banned. lol

Unfreedom (2014)

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2049630/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1unfreedom

The movie neatly depicts the social, religious & sexual turmoil prevalent in today’s society. The film juxtaposes two different thrilling stories about religious fundamentalism & intolerance.               The four main characters go beyond their absolute limits to defend their conflicting views on faith, family, freedom & love giving a strong message that it is impossible for us to find a common definition for all these. How in that case can we kill in the name of faith; discriminate in the name of love; preach in the name of freedom & idealize in the name of family morals? Are we really independent in a society that just restricts us with limited number of choices? The movie raises important questions for the societal consciousness to reflect deep within and should not be banned just because it presents the message in a hard way.

Reason for the ban: Censor Board claimed that the movie will invoke Hindu-Muslim riots & provoke “unnatural passions”. {Ha-ha. The movie wouldn’t but your comments surely would provoke the fundamentalists to think this way.}

Watch the full movie here

India’s Daughter (2015)

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4058426/india's daughter

This is the latest addition in the list of banned movies in India. I personally haven’t seen a more powerful movie in the recent times. The movie shakes you & makes you sob from within. Based on the ‘Nirbhaya’ rape-murder case, the movie exposes the violent misogyny of Indian society. The movie makes a strong plea for bringing about an optimistic change in the values of the society that spawn such violent acts. In a disturbing way, the movie showcases the values & mindsets of the rapists as well as the defense lawyers of the rapists that will make you go red with anger & disgust. In such unadulterated & non-dramatic way, we are presented with the real mindset of criminals. The movie is in fact a mirror for our society to reflect upon and I would say it should be made a compulsory watch in India in order to teach young people to differentiate between moral values & criminal values; not a single shred of unwanted education (‘gyaan’) is presented here. I agree that the movie is difficult to watch and has a lot of moist eye moments. However, the mindset which ‘banned’ this movie is precisely the issue that the movie addresses – rigid, inflexible mindsets of the leaders towards change. If at all, the government was so concerned about us, they should’ve expedited the process of hanging the brazen criminals. It is a shameful fact that they still live despite of all the turmoil created by the Indian youth following this incident. The law-makers find solace just by claiming that they changed the laws but justice still remains to be delivered to the deceased & verdict still remains to be passed by our oh-so-great judicial system. I am ashamed to live in a society that had to ban this movie!

Reason for ban: The movie would bring about negative public sentiment in the society! {Wow! As if delaying the verdict would not! On a second thought, yes I agree! It would bring about a negative public sentiment but only when it would be for everyone to know that our great government is clueless & helpless in hanging the criminals even after 3 years of the incident!}

Watch the full movie here

Gandu (2010)

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1841611/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1gandu

If you are a fan or art cinema or if you loved Gaspar Noe’s “Enter the Void”, this might just feature in your list of top Indian movies ever. Unlike the two movies above, this might not be everyone’s cup of tea and neither does it spew out strong messages for the society. This is purely made for art, for experimentation, for propelling the dawn of fearless cinema in India and more importantly for empowering people to enjoy boldness. ‘Gandu’ the protagonist hates himself, hates his mother, hates the society and raps his way out of the anger, filth & disgust that he finds in existence. He then enters the forbidden world of drugs, porn, sex & horror. Can such a person survive is the question put forth by the film-maker! Can he just have fun with the banned stuff & have that as a reason to survive without disturbing the larger society? Or must he die? Or must he commit suicide? Or must he be killed as a threat to the cultural values of the society? The story is good, the screenplay is amusing, the music is stunning, the lyrics are radical & the cinematography is what explodes with radiance – never before seen in the Indian movie industry!

The movie has full frontal nudity, explicit sex scenes & an ejaculation scene; hence I say it is not for everyone to handle. Stay away if you cannot but let’s not call it porn or any other names! It is a spirited film and all these scenes fit completely in the mood of the movie! The movie will take you by surprise but it is a great plunge & benchmark for Independent Cinema in India.

Reason for ban: Explicit sexual scenes! {I agree! Too much to handle for our censor board oldies who have been successful in restricting the nature of Cinema in India but how long will you show us just those hollow sex comedies by Sajid & traumatic sex thrillers by Himmesss!}

Watch the full movie here

Inshallah, Football (2010)

inshallah football
The problem with dreaming in Kashmir

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1758662/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

This is a documentary on the silent militant war being fought all the time in Kashmir. The movie revolves around the lives of an ex-militant; his son who is a footballer; an Argentinian football coach & his Brazilian wife – all of whom struggle for a normal life in the streets of Kashmir. A kid who dreams of playing football in Brazil someday is just left shattered as the war never leaves the state & he is denied the right to travel abroad on allegations that his father is a militant!

The movie & the narration style chosen by Ashvin Kumar are highly appreciated by the critics & has begged him quite a few awards & accolades internationally. It is a documentary that depicts the true state of affairs in the much disputed land of Kashmir. How can the government be even allowed to ban a documentary and what gives them the right to keep us aloof from the reality & the truth?

Reason for ban: The movie deals with the ‘sensitive’ issue of Kashmir! {As if ‘Haider’ was based in the Madagascar, wasn’t it?}

Watch the full movie here

Kamasutra (1996)

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116743/?ref_=nv_sr_2

Didn’t Kamasutra originate in India? How can you claim kamasutrathis art-form respected by the whole wide world as immoral? And how can you renounce the fact that this was a gift to the world from the 16th century India? The movie specifically portrays that era and brings back the magic from the classic Indian book of sex, Kamasutra – revered worldwide as the greatest work ever related to sex & guide to healthy physical relationship between lovers.

There cannot be a bigger irony in the movie industry of India when an adaptation of an Indian book is made into a movie and is yet banned in the very same country while the rest of the world cherishes it as a great piece of film-making. The film received great appreciation from all across the globe & won several awards for cinematography. The film is all about love and hardly about sex but if only our perverse censor board oldies could have the heart to understand it! They probably think ‘sex on screen’ is all about jerking & corrupting the young audience. Lol. Show some maturity, folks!

Click here to read an earlier article by us on similar lines

Reason for ban: Excessive exposure, explicit scenes & ‘immoral’ nature of the film. {As if Vatsayana just talked about ‘sex with clothes on’ in his book as is showed in the cut version of the film they think is fit for you & me. Haha. Why double standards when you boast about the rich culture & heritage of India and why wouldn’t you just demolish Khajuraho and disown Kamasutra once & for all?}

Watch the full movie here

Paanch (2003)

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0356982/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1paanch

Anurag Kashyap’s directorial debut, this movie was loosely based on the infamous Joshi-Abyankar serial murders from 1967 to 1977. The movie revolves around 4 self-destructive youngsters who play together in a band along with a fifth female member. Kay Kay Menon plays Luke, the lead singer who is also the self-imposed leader of the band providing everyone with accommodation, drugs & food. The female member also sleeps with rich guys for money. They all plan to kidnap a rich friend who is also a part of the plot and agrees to be kidnapped. The plan goes wrong as in a fit of rage Luke kills the kidnapped friend and in order to cover for one murder, they go on a killing spree gradually degrading all their morals in the process.

Kay Kay Menon delivers a powerful performance with as strong a character building as Tyler Durden in Fight Club. The songs in the movie range from jazz to grunge to rock! The song ‘Tu Jaa Mat’ reminds of Kurt Cobain & the song ‘Mai Khuda’ is for me the best performed song on-stage ever shown in an Indian movie. Kashyap also beautifully uses ‘Roadhouse Blues’ paying tribute to The Doors.

Overall, the movie is arguably one of the best crime thrillers that our industry has produced. The plot focusing on systematic destruction of human morals is bound to remind you of great films like ‘Requiem for a Dream’ & ‘Trainspotting’. In his very first attempt behind the camera, Kashyap gifts us with utter cinematic pleasure. If you are a fan of non-mainstream experimental movies, this is the best it can get for you.

Reason for ban: The movie is too dark for the Indian audience to handle – filled with violence, abusive language & drug usage. {Didn’t DevD have more drug use? Didn’t Gangs of Wasseypur have much more violence? Wasn’t “That Girl in Yellow Boots” based on a much darker theme? #JustSaying}

Watch the full movie here

Kissa Kursee Ka (1978)

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0311401/

The movie made by an ex-member of Parliament, waskissa kursi ka allegedly a satire on Indira Gandhi & her son Sanjay Gandhi. Probably the first political spoof movie of India, the film was banned by the Congress government for making fun of the Emergency. A show-cause notice of 51 objections was sent to the producer of the movie and later the original print and all other negative prints of the movie were lifted from the Censor board office in mysterious circumstances; brought to Maruti factory in Gurgaon and subsequently burned by the raged followers of Sanjay Gandhi & the Congress Party. Sanjay Gandhi & the I&B Union Minister were both found guilty of this illegal lifting & burning of the prints of the movie.

The movie exposes the inner workings of the government and how decisions are manipulated for the individual security & betterment of the politicians and their kith & kin. The movie also unleashes the ultimate weapon of ‘mass distraction’ – blame it all on the neighboring country and if that doesn’t work, indulge in war.

The movie is an accurate and hilarious look at the poor state of political affairs! Watch it and even after 37 years, you will be able to relate it all with the present scenario – elections, dharnas, corruption, dumb public, influential businessmen and the age old money making business of politics!

Reason of ban: Lampooning the Emergency. Bluntly putting, for making fun of Congress! {It’s ok to laugh at yourself sometimes, you seriously dumb statesmen!}

Watch the full movie here

All in all, telling uncomfortable truths can land you in to a lot of troubles in the Indian movie industry! We are better off with the oh-so-sensible lungi dances, oh-so-realistic Rohit Shetty car blasts, oh-so-sanskari MMSes of Ragini Devi, oh-so-gracious Honey Singh lyrics, oh-so-original Himmesss music, not-so-over-the-top romances of Shahrukh-Kajol, not-at-all-overrated Khan worshipping and finally all hail the oh-so-quality audience that will go only for the oh-so-intelligent movies like Kick, Rowdy Rathore, Chennai Express, Dhoom 3, Himmatwala & what have you!

Images: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]

 

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