FilmIndia (1939)

January 1939 JVI.G.M. PICTURE BANNED! I The Bombay Board of Film Cen.jsors have banned the M.G.M. picture. "The Criminal Is Born" say|jag that "any reformative element in this film is very incidental and ~':he whole film, except for a short !;ourt scene, shows the exploits of rvoung criminals". The Board deserves our congratulations for its iorrect and courageous action. ^ In this connection we reproduce vhat we wrote In our July issue 'egarding such pictures. "Recently ibe newspaper reported several crimes in the United Provinces. Bvith a daring and skill, that reminded one of the sequences in he American crime pictures. Does t not occur to Congress Ministers n different provinces, that this "iew school of crime finds its parent germ in the foreign crime pictures which exploit and often 'lorify crime with all its elaborateness with which the West is gifted? "Truth and non-violence, the heet anchor of the present Conress Ministries, will have soon to e traded in for crime and viomce if we have another five ears with all the bootlegging, big ouse stories of crime from Angelica." I And nowadays crime, skilful and rganlzed is reported from the pburbs of the city. Thanks to the merican crime pictures! "filmjidia" demands that every crime ticture should be banned. India las no use for crime as an indus fy. ARNER PICTURE UNDER BAN • "Garden of the Moon" produced y First National and released irough Warner Brothers has been primarily banned by the Bombay %>ard of Film Censors on the •Iround that "it contains scenes n hich are likely to offend Indian %blic sentiment." I The story of the picture centres :>und the cunning manager of sOarden of the Moon" a cafe in ollywood. He had booked a band hich did not turn up in time to ilfil the contract. His publicity girl books another band, but the manager quarrels with the leader and throws him out. Then the publicity girl realizing the weakness of the manager for Maharajas introduces a phony Indian Maharaja as a friend of the band leader to tempt the manager to continue the services of the band. The phony prince is called the "Maharajah of Sund" and it is reported that there are some objectionable references to them. The Censor Board is likely to pass the picture for exhibition if "all references to the Maharaja are removed." One cannot however, understand why an Indian Maharaja should be introduced as a pivot to MYSORE LAMPS ▼ m m insisTon MYSORE for better light The Industrial & Agricultural Engineering Co NO. 9. FORBES STREET. FORT. BOMBAY. ♦ Tkonc; 25740. ♦ ALSO AT : IARG1LME. HYDERABAD AID CAWIPME FILM INDIA move the sequences in the picture. Are our Maharajas so cheap? And where the hell in India is this phony "Maharaja of Sund." A joke at our expense! Is it? THE BRITISH TO TAX THE AMERICANS "Filmindia" understands from authoritative sources that the British Government is seriously considering a proposal of introducing a legislation to prevent the drain of capital from the country. The American film industry will be the first one to be affected under the proposed legislation, as the annual turnover of the distribution of the American pictures in Great Britain will be taxed heavily with certain provisions. The tax will be in the region of 25^ or even more. The revenue thus secured will not however go to the State Exchequer but will remain in the country and will be invested in the production and the exhibition branches of the indigenous film industry. It is high time that something on these lines is thought of by our Provincial Governments. After all. the Americans are sending out nearly 70 lakhs of rupees per year as nett profits. A 25 <~r of it will be a windfall to our film industry, which it so badly needs at present. ITALY PITS THE BRAKES ON Italy seems to be bent upon Introducing drastic changes, for the better of course, in their film relations with the Americans, lnsplte of the four major producing companies like M.G.M., Warners. 20th Century Fox and Paramount not co-operating with the Italian Government. 37