Vijay’s highly anticipated film Jana Nayagan had a surprise disruption at several cinemas in Chennai with children in auditoriums where A-certified cinema was currently being watched for the first time after the films were found in the film by filmmakers. The delays led to short delays and refunds for a few viewers in the film and discussion over age restrictions on cinemas.
One incident occurred during the 9:25 AM show at PVR Cinemas at Ampa Mall, when the screening was halted roughly ten minutes into it. The theater staff had seen police officers enter the auditorium once they got word that multiple families came to the adults-only screening.
According to one audience member, the show was interrupted for nearly an hour while theatre staff and police identified families with minor children and escorted them out of the auditorium and the show was quieted down. And during the interval, the audience members were not told about the reason for the delay and were confused and frustrated, they said.
The theatre management then refunded affected patrons and resumed the movie. Some audience members said they were disappointed in the way the film was handled and wished the theatre staff had been more forthcoming to the public so that the movie just wouldn’t have been so confusing and not as bad for the experience.
Jana Nayagan has been awarded an A (Adults Only) certificate because of its mature content. The film has scenes of intense violence along with sexual assault and abuse involving a minor, so is not suitable for the viewer below 18 years of age as per India's film certification guidelines.
The incident has once again highlighted the necessity of certification rules in the cinema halls. Under the CBFC guidelines, A-certified films are only for adults and minors are not allowed to attend them, even if accompanied by parents or guardians. Theatre operators are to check for the age of moviegoers before showing them.
The disruption also had social media users debating about whether children were allowed into an adults-only screening in the first place. Some movie fans said more ticket verification and identity checks would help prevent similar mistakes in future screenings.
Neither the film's producers nor the theatre chain had yet to respond to the disruption at the time of writing. It is not known if the same thing happened at other cinemas or if this will be done to ensure the certification is done to a higher level in the future or will the certification be upgraded.
Despite the temporary interruptions, Jana Nayagan is still drawing huge audience interest with Vijay’s fans turning out in large numbers across Tamil Nadu. But the incident is a reminder that age-based film certifications are a must for audiences to keep safe from content that is unsuitable for younger audiences.
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