IIIT-Hyderabad Calls Off Screening of Umar Khalid Documentary After CBFC Flag
IIIT-Hyderabad has cancelled a proposed screening of a documentary on Umar Khalid after the CBFC said showing an uncertified film publicly would breach the Cinematograph Act.
The International Institute of Information Technology Hyderabad (IIIT-H) has cancelled a proposed screening of a documentary on jailed activist Umar Khalid, a day after the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) said that exhibiting an uncertified film in public would violate the Cinematograph Act unless a specific exemption had been obtained.
The film, Prisoner No. 626710 is Present, is directed by filmmaker Lalit Vachani. It was to be shown by a group of students at the institute's KRB Auditorium at 8 pm on Friday.
In a statement, IIIT-Hyderabad said an informal student group had proposed the screening in a campus lecture hall on September 18, and that it had no official link to the institute. The institute said it cancelled the programme as soon as it learnt of the "unauthorised" event, since no official permission had been taken and none of the required protocols had been followed.
"The Institute has made it clear that no public or private screening of the film will be permitted in any Institute space, including classrooms, laboratories or offices," the statement said.
IIIT-Hyderabad also said neither the institute nor any of its recognised student clubs, cells or bodies were involved with the proposed screening, and that no permission had been sought from the competent authorities. It added that the event did not represent its views or position, and that it had been erroneously reported in some instances as an institute-organised event.
Noting that it hosts a large and diverse student community, the institute said students and faculty may, in their individual capacity, meet or interact with people from all walks of life, and that such personal interaction should not be read as an institute-organised event. It said it expects all members of its community to follow established procedures and applicable legal and institutional requirements when organising or announcing activities on campus.
The CBFC flagged the planned screening in a post on X, stating that publicly showing a documentary that has not been certified by the board is a violation of the Cinematograph Act unless a specific exemption has been sought under the law.
This is not the first time the documentary has run into hurdles. A planned screening at the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) in Bengaluru was postponed after objections from the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which claimed that allowing the screening would amount to using the campus for political propaganda. The student committee postponed the event, citing "logistical and security considerations", and said it would be held later in the trimester.