Will Certify 'Janaki v. State of Kerala' If Title Changed To 'V. Janaki', 2 Changes In Film Instead Of 96 Cuts: CBFC Tells Kerala High Court

The Central Board of Film Certification today informed the Kerala High Court that it is willing to certify Suresh Gopi Starrer "JSK: Janaki v. State of Kerala" if the producers change the name 'Janaki' in title to 'V Janaki'.

Advocate Abhinav Chandrachud appearing for the Board submitted that the name of the character in the movie is Janaki Vidhyadharan and so the production can consider the name in the subtitle to be changed to 'Janaki V v. State of Kerala' or 'V Janaki v. State of Kerala'.

CBFC also submitted that the title of the movie 'JSK' is fine.

He also told the Court that the CBFC has now proposed that only 2 changes be made in the film, instead of the 96 cuts proposed earlier.

Regarding the second change, the counsel for the CBFC suggested that the name 'Janaki' can be muted in the cross-examination scene where questions are asked regarding the character of the protagonist 'Janaki'.

Upon hearing the same, Justice N. Nagaresh orally stated that the hearing of the case can be continued at 1:45 pm so that the petitioners' counsels can take instructions from the production company regarding the changes proposed by the Board.

Earlier, the Court had mentioned that it would watch the film before passing final orders in the case. Accordingly, the petitioners had made arrangements to screen the film on Saturday (July 5).

Background

Cosmos Entertainment, the company which has produced the Malayalam movie 'JSK – Janaki v/s State of Kerala', had moved the Kerala High Court against the delay by the Central Board of Film Certification in certifying the film.

Notably, Suresh Gopi, a BJP politician and Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, is starring in the movie.

As per the petitioner, they had submitted the film for certification through the e-cinemapramaan portal on 12.06.2025, and the censor screening of the movie was completed on 18.06.2025. It is mentioned in the petition that though CBFC has not raised any formal objection till date, they have come to know from newspaper reports that the Board has directed to change the name 'Janaki' of the titular character, saying that it refers to the Hindu goddess 'Sita'.

According to the petitioner, the continued delay is causing financial loss and violating their rights under Article 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution.

Case Title: M/s Cosmos Entertainments v. The Regional Officer, CBFC and Others and Connected case

Case No: WP(C) No. 23326 of 2025 and Connected case