Ek Villain cleared with a U/A certificate after seven cuts

Sidharth Malhotra and Shraddha Kapoor starrer Ek Villain has been cleared with a U/A certificate by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) after eight cuts. The makers of the movie have also been told to mute the word ‘hazaam’ from the film as a similar word created controversy earlier. The word ‘barber’ was apparently removed from Shaarukh Khan starrer Billu Barber as the community found the word derogatory.

A source close to development says, "The Board told theEk Villain producers to tone down the action sequences. There was also a scene which had blood oozing from a character's neck, which the Board felt was too gory. That has been now replaced with a close-up of the girl's face instead. Also, the word 'hazaam' has been muted." Chief Executive Officer of Balaji Motion Pictures Tanuj Garg confirmed the news saying, "The film has been cleared with a U/A certificate after some minor action cuts. Together the cuts amount to just a minute of screen time." Talking about the muting of the word 'hazaam', Tanuj said, "The CBFC asked us to mute the word as they did not want any community to object."

Mohit Suri’s Ek Villain is all set to hit theatres on June 27. Riteish Deshmukh would be seen portraying a villainous role for the first time. The songs Galliyan and Hamdard from the movie have already emerged as great hits.