CBFC revamped: Pankaj Tripathi, Preity Zinta, Suniel Shetty among 18 new members appointed

Suniel Shetty, Preity Zinta, Pankaj Tripathi and filmmaker Priyadarshan are among those who are part of the newly reconstituted Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). On Wednesday, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting shared the list of the reconstituted Central Board for a three-year term.

This comes at a time when the film certification board has continuously faced backlash over its decisions. The board is reconstituted every three years, and the last change happened in 2017 when 12 members were added. However, the members of the board beyond 2020 as no revamped happened.

CBFC revamped: Pankaj Tripathi, Preity Zinta, Suniel Shetty among 18 new members appointed

The Government of India has reconstituted the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) with immediate effect. The newly revamped CBFC board comes with 18 members, comprising actors, singers and directors: Preity Zinta, Vinod Anupam, Manoj Joshi Abhishek Jain, Grammy-winning composer Ricky Kej, directr Priyadarshan, Suniel Shetty, Hansraj Hans, Supriya Yarlagadda, Yatindra Mishra, Roopali Ganguly, Preity Zinta, Neela Madhab Panda, Pankaj Tripathi, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Pallavi Joshi, Nishigandha Wad, Waman Kendre and Ramesh Patange.

The reconstitution has been done for a period of three years, or until further orders, whichever is earlier, the press release reads.

The new board is headed by CBFC chairperson Shashi Shekhar Vempati. Soon after the new list was released, he wrote on X, “Congratulations and welcome to the new Board Members of @CBFC_Bharat.”

The reconstitution has been carried out by the Central Government in exercise of the powers conferred under sub-section (1) of Section 3 of the Cinematograph Act, 1952, read with Rule 3 of the Cinematograph (Certification) Rules, 2024.

This revamp comes after the CBFC faced massive backlash over Diljit Dosanjh's Sattar, previously titled Punjab '95. Originally submitted to the censor board in 2022, the film has faced prolonged hurdles over its clearance.

The outgoing board included actor Vidya Balan, filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri, actor Gautami Tadimalla, Vani Tripathi Tikoo, actor Jeevitha Rajasekhar, among others.