Jana Nayagan Censor Row: The primary focus of the Madras High Court's hearing on the Jana Nayagan censorship controversy was whether the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) followed the legal process while granting and later revoking the film's certification. The main question in the case is whether the board's January 5 communication that Jana Nayagan was being sent for review may be challenged because the producers were not given enough time to answer.

Jana Nayagan's producers used Dhurandhar 2 as justification for promoting a release date prior to receiving certification, and the Madras High Court on Tuesday reserved its ruling in the case. For the unaware, the court questioned KVN Productions throughout the hearing for announcing the movie's release date without obtaining a censorship certificate. Senior counsel Satish Parasaran, speaking on behalf of the production company, responded to the observation by claiming that this was standard procedure in the movie business.

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Jana Nayagan team's legal representative informed the court that announcing the release date without a certificate is an 'industry practice', in reference to Dhurandhar 2's March 19 release date. Producers frequently declare release dates while the certification procedure is still in progress, he maintained. "If you see Bollywood, they have already announced Dhurandhar 2."

The court also looked at the functions of the CBFC board, the advisory panel, and the examining committee in order to ascertain who actually watched the movie and who had the power to change the ruling.

CBFC vs Jana Nayagan Team Clash

ASG ARL Sundaresan, speaking on behalf of CBFC, contended that since the January 5 order to send the movie for review was not contested on time, the producers were not entitled to instant relief. According to Livelaw, the subject was forwarded to the board following the examining committee's recommendation of 14 layoffs, and a subsequent complaint prompted the board to postpone the decision. He maintained that the producers could not assert a right to certification because the board's statement was only a temporary measure rather than a permanent directive. The ASG also brought up the procedural problem of not having enough time to submit a rebuttal, arguing that a day or two would be adequate.

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Senior Advocate Satish Parasaran retorted that following the examining committee's unanimous recommendation, the CBFC has already decided to certify the movie. According to him, the judgment was posted on the e-cinepraman website on January 6, 2026, after the producers received the message on January 5.

Jana Nayagan Censor Row

Jana Nayagan was originally scheduled for release on January 9 as a Pongal special. Directed by H Vinoth, the Tamil movie marks Vijay's last movie before his official political debut. However, the CBFC notified the filmmakers that the chairman had chosen to send the movie to a revision committee, a few days prior to its scheduled release. The producers then filed a motion with the Madras High Court.

Judge PT Asha ordered the CBFC to issue a U/A 16+ certificate for the movie right away on January 9. The CBFC's Additional Solicitor General, ARL Sundaresan, sought an urgent mention before the Chief Justice; the respite was short-lived. Later, the makers challenged the stay granted by the High Court division bench before the Supreme Court. The top court questioned the speed of the case's procedures and rejected the request, asking the Madras High Court to make a prompt decision.

The Madras High Court reserved its order on Tuesday following the hearing of comprehensive submissions on January 20.