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‘Barbie’ cleared for release in Punjab following ‘minor cuts’

Published August 2, 2023
Moviegoers walk past the poster of the movie ‘Barbie’ at a cineplex in Islamabad on July 21, 2023. The film’s release was delayed in Pakistan’s Punjab province on July 21 over “objectionable content”, officials said. Photo: AFP
Moviegoers walk past the poster of the movie ‘Barbie’ at a cineplex in Islamabad on July 21, 2023. The film’s release was delayed in Pakistan’s Punjab province on July 21 over “objectionable content”, officials said. Photo: AFP

The Punjab Film Censor Board decided on Tuesday that Hollywood film ‘Barbie’ will now be released following some minor cuts, reported Aaj News.

“The censor board cleared the film ‘Barbie’ for release,” interim information minister of Punjab, Amir Mir, said in a statement. “The film will be released after the removal of objectional content.”

The film was presented in front of a full board for review, where it was decided that some portions were “objectionable”.

‘Barbie’ delayed in Punjab over ‘objectionable content’

The reevaluation process involved all 12 members of the censor board, including Chairman Touqeer Nasir.

Earlier, ‘Barbie’ faced a ban in Punjab due to the presence of “objectionable content”, according to media reports. The reevaluation process involved the removal of content which the board considers objectionable.

“There will be a full review of the film, and it will be censored where deemed necessary,” Farrukh Mahmood, secretary of the Punjab Film Censor Board, had said at that time.

‘Barbie’ movie sets record as biggest US, Canadian debut of 2023

Last week, Mir told BBC Urdu that the movie was “not banned” in the province.

When asked if the same movie was being released in other provinces, he said that if other provinces don’t mind playing objectionable content, they can release it, but Punjab won’t release it.

The Hollywood blockbuster had opened on July 21, the same weekend as another big-budget starrer, ‘Oppenheimer’, thus earning the tandem release of the two films the industry term of, ‘Barbenheimer.’

The movie, which stars Margot Robbie as the famous doll and Ryan Gosling as her boyfriend Ken, has been hyped as one of the biggest blockbusters of the season, with numerous premieres held around the globe.

Last year, ‘Joyland’ — a Cannes prize-winning film and Pakistan’s entry for the 2023 Oscars — was banned by the government for being “clearly repugnant to the norms of decency and morality” of the country.

The film was later cle­ared by the natio­nal censor board.

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