CBCI Wants Cuts In Shekhar Kapoor's Film 'Elizabeth' By SAR NEWS NEW DELHI (SAR NEWS) -- The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), the apex body of the Catholic Church in India, has urged chairperson of the Central Board of Films Certification (CBFC) in India, Sharmila Tagore, to consider the sentiments of millions of followers of Christianity in the country before giving its approval to English movie 'Elizabeth' directed by Shekhar Kapoor, which is to be released shortly.
In a letter November 21 to Sharmila, Archbishop Stanislaus Fernandes, the secretary general of CBCI, appealed for censoring of "anti-Catholic scenes" in the controversial film. The archbishop also requested the CBFC chairperson to consult the CBCI before the film is released. The CBCI had intervened last year before the film 'The Da Vinci Code' was released. The CBFC had invited the CBCI to view the film before its release. The Board had accepted the suggestions put forward by the CBCI on 'Da Vinci Code'. As a result the film was shown with a disclaimer that it was a work of fiction. The CBCI has sought a similar disclaimer for 'Elizabeth'. Archbishop Stanislaus Fernandes has urged the CBFC chairperson to censor 'Elizabeth', as it "unnecessarily targets the Catholic Church and its leaders and this is not acceptable to a community that respects other religions and their leaders". Scholars and historians across the globe have described the film as an "anti-papal travesty". According to them, the film is wrong in both fact and inclination. "A film which so profoundly and perversely falsifies history cannot be judged as a good film," Prof. Cardini, a noted Florence University historian, said. Archbishop Fernandes said that to present Catholicism in a distorted manner is an insult to its followers, not only in India but also across the world. The CBCI, however, has not pinpointed the objectionable scenes in the film. -- Frederick Noronha http://fn.goa-india.org Ph 0091-832-2409490 12000+ downloadable, sharable hi-res photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/fn-goa/
