Tusshar Kapoor reveals in his book that he visited the Tirupati temple after Mastizaade was denied a censor certificate

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By Fenil Seta -

February 10, 2022 - 4:00 PM IST

Exactly 7 years ago, Pahlaj Nihalani stepped in as the chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). His 2 ½ years tenure was the most controversial one as he brought several strict rules in place. Several films had to make cuts in scenes or dialogues which didn’t seem objectionable to most moviegoers. After he ordered a couple of seconds to be deleted from the kissing in the James Bond film Spectre (2015), he became a laughing stock and the CBFC was termed as ‘Sanskaari Censor Board’. #SanskaariJamesBond and #SanskaariCensorBoard trended for days and are two of the most memorable hashtags on social media in recent times.

Tusshar Kapoor reveals in his book that he visited the Tirupati temple after Mastizaade was denied a censor certificate

If this was the condition of mainstream and relatively ‘clean’ films, one can imagine what the adult films would have gone through. Mastizaade (2016) was one such film, starring Tusshar Kapoor, Sunny Leone and Vir Das. Tusshar has briefly touched upon the problems faced by his sex comedy while trying to get clearance from the CBFC in his recently released book, 'Bachelor Dad: My Journey To Fatherhood And More'.

Tusshar Kapoor narrated that in May 2015, he had completed filming for Mastizaade and was shooting for another sex comedy, Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3 (2016). He was filming for the final schedule of the successful sex comedy franchise when he got the news that Mastizaade, directed by Milap Zaveri, has been denied a censor certificate due to the film’s risqué content. For Tusshar, it was a big blow as he was also working on Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3 and he feared even this film could face the same fate. Soon, the news leaked about Mastizaade’s CBFC row. Tusshar Kapoor wrote in the book, “Social media was abuzz with headlines that stated, ‘Mastizaade banned!’” All this and other problems of life took a toll on him.

This is when he decided to seek some divine intervention. He planned a trip to Tirupati to seek Lord Balaji’s blessings. Tusshar Kapoor revealed that though he’s not very religious, he visits the Lord Balaji Temple in Tirupati at least once a year. He usually does so before the release of his film as a visit to the temple makes him less stressed. He stated, “At the cost of sounding superstitious, I have to admit I do believe in its power and have felt less stressed after visiting the shrine on the eve of any film’s release.” This time, however, he was visiting the temple town to pray for Mastizaade and that it gets a cinematic release.

Mastizaade was ultimately released on January 29, 2016. However, it tanked and so did Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3, which arrived in cinemas a week before Mastizaade. Tusshar Kapoor’s Tirupati trip, however, became unforgettable and significant as that is where he firmly decided that he wants to be a single father.

Also Read: “I was to pull my trousers down, but I pulled my underwear down along with them, inadvertently putting my booty on full display for a few seconds” – Tusshar Kapoor