The Censor Board will hold discussions with film producers, to sensitise them for avoiding indecent portrayal of women in films, given its wide impact on people’s psyche and which to a large extent determines how the society treats the fair sex.
The Censor Board, which is an independent agency having a guideline regarding portrayal of women in films, has been asked by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to make suitable changes in it to make it apt for the present situation. Also strict enforcement of guidelines are also necessary, Information and Broadcasting Ministry Secretary Uday Verma told The Pioneer.
The Ministry is also planning to write to News Broadcasters Association and Indian Broadcasting Foundation and hold consultations with them to ensure that TV, having the biggest reach, should portray women properly sans any nudity and stereotyping of women.
The Ministry had recently held a workshop in which various stakeholders participated and it was highlighted that increased tolerance and change in mindset was required. It has also constituted a committee headed by the secretary to discuss measures required to ensure proper portrayal of women while a joint panel of I&B and Women and Child Development Ministries has also been set up for better coordination on the issue.
These efforts are part of the decision taken by the Inter Ministerial Group headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh about adopting a mission mode approach for empowerment of women and provide them safety, security, better health, nutrition and education facilities and reduce maternal and infant mortality and improve sex ratio.
The Cabinet Secretariat recently held a meeting of secretaries of various Ministries, including that of Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Women and Child Development, HRD and other concerned Ministries participated and deliberated on implementation of the various recommendations of the Justice JS Verma Committee report prepared in view of the public outrage following the Delhi gang-rape incident.