‘You Have Remote, You Have Mobile, Be Your Own Censor,’ Says Actor Pankaj Kapur | FP Photo
Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Underscoring the need for self-censorship, eminent film, TV, and theatre actor Pankaj Kapur has said that every person should be their own censor and decide what they should watch. In the age of the internet and Artificial Intelligence, he said on Thursday, no authority can censor the content available online.
The actor, who became a household name by playing the lead in TV detective series ‘Karamchand’ in the late 1980s, is in Bhopal to perform in a play, ‘ Dopehri’, at the Indiemoons Arts Festival at the Hansdhwani auditorium of Ravindra Convention Centre on Friday.
Interacting with mediapersons, Kapur said that self-censorship, not so much by content creators as by the audience, is the only way out. On being asked whether excessive violence and vulgarity in content produced for OTT platforms should be curbed, he said, “You have the TV remote, you have the mobile phone, you decide on the basis of your mindset, your upbringing, and your taste what you want to watch.”
Kapur said that modern technology has not fundamentally changed filmmaking. “Yes, the cameras are more sensitive, you need less lighting, special effects are easier but the basics remain the same — a story, a good script and good acting,” he said. He said that making a film controversial is also no guarantee of its success.
“In fact, no one knows what makes a film click at the box office. If there indeed was a formula, everyone would have adopted it.” he said. Referring to the recent controversy surrounding a stand-up comic, Kapur said a line has to be drawn somewhere.
“You cannot keep on falling lower and lower. You have to stop at some point,” he said. About current films costing hundreds of crores of rupees, Kapur said that filmmakers are probably using lavish sets so as to draw the audience to theatres. “They want to make films that you can enjoy only on the big screen,” he said.
