Veteran lyricist Sameer Anjaan has weighed in on the controversy surrounding Sarke Chunar, the song from the upcoming Kannada film KD: The Devil, and said that it is unfair to hold writers solely responsible for such content.“Log humesha writer ko gherne ki koshish karte hain, jabki sabse kam galti writer ki hoti hai. Sometimes, a story warrants a ‘mirch masala’ type of a song. Mirch masala is okay. Sarkai Lo Khatiya was that,” he told News18, referring to the popular track from Raja Babu.However, he added that there is a difference between suggestive and deliberately vulgar content. “Lekin Sarkai Lo Khatiya Sanjay Dutt waala gaana nahi tha. Sometimes, a normal song is made to sound vulgar deliberately,” he added.
‘CBFC ne kaise pass kiya?’
Sameer also questioned the role of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and asked why the song was cleared in the first place.“Why did it not get censored? If a regular auto driver is able to decipher how vulgar the song is, did the people at CBFC not understand the double meaning? Legal route lene ka mauka hi kyun diya gaya usko?” he asked.He added that banning content after its release serves little purpose. “They chose to ban the song eventually, but you can’t completely erase something from the digital world,” he said.
‘Double standards kyu?’
The lyricist further criticised the wider industry and added that vulgarity is not limited to songs alone.“Some of the biggest films and shows have cuss words in the name of dialogues. Is that not vulgarity? Is that not wrong? There may be no regulation on the OTT space, but censorship exists in theatrical films,” he said.He asked, “So why do they still have abuses in them? And if dialogues can have cuss words, songs can also have vulgarity in them. What kind of double standards is this?”Taking it further, he added, “Agar log gaaliyaan sunne ke liye tayyaar hain, toh phir vulgar gaane bhi sunne do. Phir blue films banwa ke release kar do kuch dino ke baad. Woh bhi dekhke do logon ko.”
‘Ban karne ka kya fayda baad mein?’
Sameer attributed the situation to changing societal attitudes and said stricter checks are needed at the certification stage.“There should be strict restrictions on these things. Such songs should never be allowed to release in the first place. What’s the point of banning it and fighting it out when it has already released?” he said.He added, “Earlier, people knew their boundaries, but abhi agar saari duniya itni khul gayi hai, toh khulne do!” The song Sarke Chunar, featuring Nora Fatehi, was banned last month following intense backlash over lyrics filled with sexual innuendos. The All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA) had written to Prasoon Joshi, demanding an FIR against the makers.Nora failed to appear before the National Commission for Women (NCW) on April 6 and has been given a final opportunity to attend the hearing on April 27. In a video statement, she said that she had not approved the Hindi version of the track and urged viewers not to hold her responsible. Meanwhile, lyricist Raqueeb Alam said that he only translated the song, while director Prem wrote the original Kannada lyrics.
