Katrina, Arjun love making scene was absolutely essential: Jha

`Raajneeti` has got a UA certificate but not without some vital scenes, including Arjun-Kat`s love making scene that Prakash says was "absolutely essential", being edited out.

Mumbai: `Raajneeti` has finally got a UA certificate but not without some vital scenes, including Arjun Rampal and Katrina Kaif`s "aesthetically shot love making scene" that director Prakash Jha says was "absolutely essential", being edited out. "It was a very aesthetically shot love making scene. Arjun and Katrina are two very beautiful people. And they made love to the camera. The Tribunal (Film Certification Appellate Tribunal) felt it was a bit too explicit for a ‘UA’ audience. I didn’t argue," Jha told reporters.

Jha’s weeklong battle with the censor board ended Wednesday with the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal in New Delhi viewing `Raajneeti` and granting it a ‘UA’ certificate. The director had challenged the censor board’s decision earlier last week to grant `Raajneeti` an ‘A’ certificate with cuts. Jha sees the reduction of the Katrina-Ranbir love making scene as a blow. "The love scene was absolutely essential. Unlike other directors I had not shot extra footage so that the censors could take away whatever portion they liked. I had shot the love making scene exactly the way it was meant to be. I`ve had to reduce it by half. "It`s a disappointment to all of us. I`ve also had to beep out the F… word uttered by Ranbir Kapoor and Arjun Rampal in two different places in the plot. Ex-justice Usha Mehra, who headed the Tribunal, requested me to do away with the F… word. But it didn`t make a difference," he said. Ajay Devgn, Naseeruddin Shah, Nana Patekar and Manoj Bajpai too will be seen "Raajneeti". Releasing June 4, the political thriller will be the behind-the-scenes look at politics, strategies behind election campaigns, scandals and much more. Apparently, the censor board had earlier objected to two sequences - one showing the rigging of elections by fitting ballot boxes with specially designed gadgets and the other showing a female politician offering sex in exchange for an election ticket. "An ‘A’ certificate brings on a specific mindset on the audience. They think the film has sleazy content. So I preferred to let the film be referred to the Tribunal," said Jha. Also Arjun`s volatile character in "Raajneeti" shouts lurid and graphic expletives Hindi at a police officer. These remain intact while the `f` word is gone. Several recent Hindi films like `Omkara` and `Ishqiya` were plastered with expletives but got away at the censors with an A certificate. IANS