Amid the Jana Nayagan censorship fiasco, Sivakarthikeyan’s Parasakthi received clearance from the censor board on Friday—just a day before its scheduled release on January 10. While the court hearing related to Jana Nayagan now pushed to January 21, Sivakarthikeyan has reacted to the latest developments.
Speaking to the media at an event in Chennai, the actor said, “This was very unexpected. No one thought the film would get postponed. I wished for the audience to watch both the films. There have been a lot of unexpected developments over the last 15 days, and we were learning new things every day.”
He added, “Even yesterday, when I was in Trichy for a promotional event, we knew we still didn’t have the censor certificate, but we continued doing our work. Today, we know that Parasakthi will release on January 10. I don’t like to compete with anyone—there is enough space for everyone in this film industry. If I wanted to compete, I would have become an athlete or a boxer.”
Earlier, speaking about the box office clash with Jana Nayagan, Sivakarthikeyan had described it as an “Annan Thambi Pongal,” urging audiences to celebrate the festival by watching both films.
During his interaction with the media, Sivakarthikeyan also addressed the controversies surrounding him, saying, “I prefer to focus on my work. Anonymous people talk on social media, and I am only answerable to people I know personally. These days, I spend more time with my family and close friends, and I am very happy. If I log onto social media, it feels like everyone—including President Trump—is criticising us.”
Reflecting on the last-minute uncertainty caused by the certification delay for Parasakthi, he remarked, “Maybe we should send films for certification much more in advance.”
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During the court hearing earlier today, it was brought to the bench’s notice that emergent orders were being sought as KVN Productions LLP had decided to release the film on January 9.
Responding to this, the Chief Justice observed, “You cannot create a false state of emergency and put pressure on the court to pass orders. How can you go ahead with the screening of a movie without having a certificate in hand?”
While senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for KVN Productions, attempted to convince the division bench about the urgency of the matter, the Chief Justice concurred with Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who argued that the censor board had not been given adequate opportunity to defend itself.
Senior advocate Mr Sundaresan told the court that the writ petition had been filed on January 6 and was heard the same day after the grant of a lunch motion. He added that the CBFC was directed to produce records on January 7, after which the single judge reserved orders and pronounced them on January 9. He further stated that the board was not given an opportunity to file a detailed counter-affidavit rebutting the claims made by the production house.
