Cinemas are not only a source of entertainment but also serve a purpose for the education of the common masses. Several Bollywood films have sparked controversies owing to its content and have been subsequently banned.
Here’s a list of 15 films that have been banned abroad :-
Padman
Akshay Kumar starrer massive hit, ‘Padman’ has been officially censored in Pakistan due to its taboo subject. The film revolves around menstrual hygiene and talks about the accessibility of women to sanitary napkins residing in rural areas. Pakistan has refused to screen the R-Balki directed film as it is against their culture, society, and even religion.
Oh My God
Also, Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal starrer Oh My God has wronged several religious sentiments across UAE. Not only in UAE but also the film has left the Indian audience with several mixed reactions as it throws light on the harsh realities of religious fanatics.
The dirty picture
Vidya Balan’s acting in the dirty picture has been described as the ‘single boldest performance by a woman in the history of Indian cinema’. The film is centered around the tragedy of bold actress Silk Smitha, who ends her life after several scandals. The film has been banned in Qatar as it is too erotic for the orthodox audience.
Delhi belly
Delhi belly, featuring Amir Khan, has sparked several controversies over its explicit content and excessive swearing. Ensuring its release, the film was subsequently banned in Nepal.
Bombay
Bombay, directed by Mani Ratnam, is one of the critically acclaimed cinemas so far. However, the film portrayed inter-religious relations and religious riots which incited several controversies that were banned in Singapore.
Fiza
Fiza, starring Hrithik Roshan and Karishma Kapoor, is based on the 1993 Bombay riots where Hrithik is conceived as a middle-class Muslim man who ran away from his house and becomes a terrorist. The movie was banned in Malaysia as it portrayed Muslims in a negative light.
Baby
Neeraj Pandey directed the film, Baby had an exceptional response from his audience and did well in the box office. However, the film was banned in Pakistan as the film had depicted the arrest of an infamous Pakistani terrorist.
Ranjhanaa
The film described the beautiful love story of a Muslim woman (Sonam Kapoor) with two Hindu men (Abhay Deol and Dhanush). The film was consequently censored in Pakistan as they found Sonam’s character too ludicrous for a Muslim woman.
Agent Vinod
Although Agent Vinod tanked at the Indian theatres, the film was not perceived well in Pakistan as the country was picturized to support the Taliban in Afghanistan and drop a nuclear bomb in India’s national capital, Delhi, and thus was unapproved by Pakistan film authorities.
Tere bin laden
It is no new news that Pakistan had morally backed Osama Bin Laden during the 9/11 attacks. The film revolved around the assassination of the terrorist by US covert mission under Barack Obama and didn’t sell out in Pakistan.
Bangistan
Comedy based, Ritesh Deshmukh starrer depicted suicide bombers was banned in Pakistan.
Udta Punjab
Udta Punjab raised several issues regarding cocaine resell, purchase, and addiction among teenagers in Punjab. The film was prohibited in both Punjab and Pakistan.
Neerja
The biopic on air hostess, Neerja Bhanot, played by Sonam Kapoor who saved air passengers during the terrorist hijack, was also evicted from screening in Pakistan.
Dishoom
The film that starred John Abraham, Jaqueline Fernandez, and Varun Dhawan was not well received in Pakistan as the film shows how an Indian batsman is kidnaped in the middle east, portraying Pakistan in a negative light.
Phantom
The banning of this film in Pakistan has come as a surprise to the team as Hafiz Saeed, a Pakistani terrorist had reportedly disapproved of the movie and refused to have any relation with the past terror attacks.
