Prasoon Joshi: 'Good intent is the best beginning'

'One hopes to make a positive difference with the guidance and support of respected minds'
Subhash K Jha reports.

Prasoon Joshi's appointment as the new chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification has come as no surprise to informed sources in the ministry of information and broadcasting.

Says an informed source, "Prasoon Joshi was a frontrunner for the post. They wanted someone young, vibrant, contemporary and liberal in thought and of an intellectual bent of mind though not overly intellectualised in his approach to Hindi cinema."

"Prasoon fitted the bill," the source added. "Names like Prakash Jha, Madhur Bhandarkar and Dr Chandraprakash Diwedi, which were leaked into the press as potential replacements for Pahlaj Nihalani were not even considered."

• Pahlaj Nihalani: 'My foes must be celebrating an early Diwali'

"Bearing responsibility and do my best has been my endeavour," Prasoon Joshi told me. "I have believed that rights and responsibilities are better served with constructive contribution.

"One hopes to make a positive difference with the guidance and support of respected minds," Joshi added.

"Good intent is the best beginning."

In the meanwhile, ousted CBFC chairperson Pahlaj Nihalani left his CBFC duties on Friday, August 11, afternoon though he received no official letter informing him of his exit.

THE PRASOON JOSHI INTERVIEWS

• 'If you aim to be authentic, you have to borrow from your life'
• 'Our society has become transactional'
• 'India is such a fantastic country'

IMAGE: Prasoon Joshi cleans the streets outside the Sofi Mahal building in Lalbaug, South Mumbai, as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. Photograph: Sahil Salvi