Pakistan’s government has blocked the nationwide release of “Joyland,” the first Pakistani movie shown at the Cannes Film Festival, just one week before it was due to hit theaters in the South Asian country.
“Joyland” tells a love story between the youngest son of “a happily patriarchal joint family” and a transgender starlet he meets after secretly joining an erotic dance theater, according to a synopsis on the Cannes Film Festival website.
In August, the country’s Central Board of Film Censors (CBFC) granted a certificate allowing the movie to be released, but on Friday Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a notice saying it was now “uncertified.”
The official notice said written complaints had been received that the movie contains “highly objectional material” that does not conform with the “social values and moral standards of our society.”
The ministry’s notice said cinemas that fall under the CBFC’s jurisdiction cannot show the movie.
“Joyland” won the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize and the unofficial Queer Palm at Cannes in May. It was then submitted to the Oscars as Pakistan’s official entry for the international feature film award. However, it needs to be in theaters for at least seven days before November 30 to remain in contention for the awards.
Despite being banned from release in Pakistan, “Joyland” could still qualify in this category if it is “theatrically exhibited outside of the U.S. and its territories for at least seven consecutive days in a commercial motion picture theater for paid admission,” according to the official Academy rules.-CNN (NewsNow)