Explore the controversial history of ‘Bhakta Vidur,’ the groundbreaking film in Indian cinema to face significant censorship challenges. Film censorship generally involves experts deleting indecent or objectionable content to protect the public sentiments. However, readers might be surprised; the film censorship firstly emerged for the ‘Protection of the Public’ watching the film.
Surprised?? Well, in the early days when cinema was just born, the film stock was manufactured from the combination of Nitrocellulose and Camphor to make Nitrate film. Since Nitrocellulose was an explosive hence the formation of Nitrate Film was a violently flammable substance. In the early 19th century, many accidents occurred in European theaters due to the flammable quality of film during screenings. Hence before showing a film in cinema halls filmmakers had to acquire a licence for public safety.
After Raja Harishchandra (1913) India saw a rapid film production growth. Due to this popularity, in 1917, a Bill was introduced in the British legislative council. The Cinematograph Act Film Censorship aimed to ensure both safety and ‘protection of the public’ from indecent or otherwise objectionable representations’. The bill passed in 1918.
Orphans Of the Storm – The First Certified Film
The First Film that was passed under the Indian Censorship Act 1918 was DW Griffith’s film Orphans of the Storm underwent. It was the story of two sisters at the backdrop of the French revolution.
Bhakta Vidur’s Censorship Trouble
The First Film that faced the censor hard-ship and was banned was Kohinoor Film Company’s Bhakta Vidur (1921). The silent film was directed by Kanjibhai Rathod. The film starred Dwarakdas Sampat (as Vidura). Though the film told the mythological story of Hindu epic Mahabharata but the undercurrent of the film had political undertones of India’s independence struggle. The character of Vidur was inspired by the personality of Mahatma Gandhiji.
The film had few scenes like Gandhi cap and references to contemporary political events of the country. The British banned the film soon after the Rowlatt Act. They claimed it would incite people against the government and support Mahatma Gandhi’s Non-Co-operation Movement. The authorities banned the film in Madras, Karachi, and some other provinces.
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