The trade was agog with rumours today (12th July) that Akshay Kumar, Pankaj Tripathi and Yami Gautam starrer Oh My God! 2 had been refused certificate by the Central Board of Film Certification. But this is not completely true. While it is a fact that the film has not been passed by the CBFC, it is wrong to say that it has been refused certificate. The truth is that the film, seen by the examining committee, has now been referred to the revising committee.
There is also talk in the industry circles that after the Allahabad high court’s rap to the CBFC in the case of certification of Adipurush with its several objectionable dialogues, the CBFC can’t afford to take another blot on its reputation by being careless. Since the trailers of Oh My God! 2 show Akshay Kumar dressed as Lord Shiva, the certifying authority might have thought it prudent to be safe than sorry this time.
An insider wishing to remain anonymous told Information that OMG! 2 was shot partly in the Mahakal temple of Ujjain, during which schedule Akshay was seemingly playing Lord Shiva. According to the source, a set for the now controversial film was constructed in the temple premises. Several locals had objected to the shooting in the temple while it was being held, but the local administration as well as the temple authorities had decided to let the unit go ahead with the shooting without addressing the objections. The source added, “It is not clear whether those granting permission checked the scenes which were to be shot in the temple premises or not, but now that the film has caught the attention of the CBFC, the local administration as well as the Mahakal Temple committee will have to probably answer some difficult questions.”
As they say, in filmi parlance, the plot thickens….