An attack on progressive cinema - The Hindu

Film festivals have generally been viewed as platforms for free expression, with even works considered unsuitable for a wider audience getting screened in their entirety at festivals. But this year, the censors decided to scrutinise the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), with the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting denying censor exemption to as many as 19 of the 206 films charted for screening at the festival.Films screened at festivals do not require a censor certificate, but they do need a censor exemption from the Union Ministry to be screened. Except for a couple of instances in the past, the censor exemption process has been a mere formality.