Fan asks, 'When will Omerta release on OTT?'; Director Hansal Mehta reacts

Hansal Mehta's intense drama of a dreaded terrorist in "Omerta" received thundering applause at film festivals and was highly praised by both the viewers and reviewers. The film chronicles the life of British-born terrorist Omar Saeed Sheikh (played by Rajkummar Rao), who was freed in the exchange for passengers of a hijacked Indian Airlines plane in 1999 and was later accused of killing journalist Daniel Pearl.

The movie released in 2017 and those who missed watching it have been waiting for its release on OTT. A fan wrote to director Hansal Mehta asking about the same, and the director said, "Sorry. I don't know. Don't waste your time asking me this because I don't know. And I will not know." [sic]

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About Omerta

The film features Mehta's frequent collaborator Rajkummar Rao playing the part of the terrorist, but before he came on board, there were a few actors who were approached for the role. "...That is much before I met Rajkummar. With 'Omerta' I was not able to find the producer initially for the film. I even pitched the story of 'Omerta' to the producers of 'Shahid' but they wanted to make 'Shahid' first as it seemed more manageable. I think everything happens at the right time. Rajkummar and I met and that changed things for us," he says.

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Given the fair bit of violence and tone of the film, Mehta did envisage the problem in getting a smooth clearance from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). When the director first went to the examining committee seeking an 'A' certificate, the board ordered several cuts which Mehta felt were "unjustified" and he approached the revising committee, hoping they would understand the context of the film.

"The examining committee had asked for cuts which were completely unjustified. I had gone for the screening asking A certificate. I requested them give us an A certificate, I was surprised why the cuts. I had to take the film to revising committee that's why the delay in release date. "The revising committee suggested two cuts and I could have taken to tribunal but it is unfair to producers who have invested money in the film as the tribunal would take time. There were two cuts and we did it," he says.

(with PTI inputs)