Vishwaroopam

Kamal Haasan's Vishwaroopam is returning to cinemas in Malaysia, but only after 16 dialogue cuts were made to avoid offence to muslim viewers.

The film was yanked from Malaysian theaters the day after it opened on January 25, even though it had been approved by the Film Censorship Board (LPF). According to The Hollywood Reporter, the LPF acted in response to letters of protest filed by the Malaysian Indian Muslim Congress and the Federation of Malaysian Indian Muslim Associations complaining of religious insensitivity,

Film Business Asia reports that the distributor has not yet announced when the film would return to theaters. In the meantime, pirated DVD copies have circulated widely in Malaysia.

After Kamal Hasan's Vishwaroopam faced ban from the Tamil Nadu government, the government has constituted a panel to examine issues of certification under the Cinematograph Act 1952 to ensure than films cleared by Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) do not get disrupted thereafter.

The committee will be chaired by Mukul Mudgal, a retired Chief Justice, the ministry of information & broadcasting (I&B) said in a press statement.

The 8 member panel would also have Lalit Bhasin, chairperson, Film Certification Appellate Tribunal, Sharmila Tagore, former chairperson, CBFC and Javed Akhtar along with others, it added.

According to the ministry, the committee has been asked to review the mandate and functioning of central board of film certification (CBFC) and recommend measures including statutory changes to enable CBFC to deal with contemporary requirements of certification and increased transparency/efficiency.

Indian movie maker Kamal Hassan has reached a settlement with Muslim organizations in southern India and agreed to delete seven scenes from his latest spy thriller Vishwaroopam.

The Tamil Nadu government had banned Hassan's film in the state following protests from several islamic groups objecting to the film's portrayal of muslim baddies.

Hassan and Muslim leaders reached an agreement after more than five hours of talks. Islamic groups have promised to call off their protests against the film and withdraw legal cases that they have filed against the filmmaker.

Update: Madras High Court refuses ban

6th February 2013. See  article from  thehindu.com

The Madras High Court has refused to ban Vishwaroopam citing that cuts have been agreed in Tamil Nadu and that the film is being shown in the rest of the country.