Madras High Court strong take on Film Reviews

Madras High Court strong take on Film Reviews. Madras High Court delivered a crucial verdict on the writ petition filed by Tamil Film Active Producers Association (TFAPA) seeking ban on Film Reviews for the first three days.

Delivering its verdict, Justice N. Anand Venkatesh said," reviewing the quality of newly-released movies on mainstream media as well as social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and X was also a part of the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression and therefore, producers could not expect only positive reviews."

He continued" The members of the producers association should accept the reality and not attempt to foreclose reviews. The relief sought for by them in the present writ petition is unsustainable and cannot be granted by this court,”

The judge told the petitioner’s counsel “we are living in an era when people give negative reviews even about judges. Just go and see how they have criticised me on the social media. We cannot stop all those things. Today anything and anybody can be reviewed. It is all beyond control.”

He also questioned I follow a different practice. Whenever there is a negative review about a movie, I watch that particular movie because I know that it is done by some force. With social media, you can stop nobody. If you stop someone here, another person will do it from Azerbaijan. What will you do then?”

The judge also asked, “even if I pass an order as sought by you, how can that order be implemented? I do not believe in passing orders which cannot be implemented. You are seeking impossibility before this court. Today, the entire world is in the grip of social media. There is not a single person/organisation/country which escapes the review or comments made in social media.”

He added “In the social media era, awareness is the only solution through which the society can tread a balanced path. People must gauge movies after watching them and should not be swayed by what others say about those movies.”