No One Can Stop Movie Reviews, Says High Court

The Madras High Court rejected a request made by the Tamil Film Active Producers Association to ban online movie reviews for the first three days after a film’s release. The court said such a ban would go against the right to freedom of speech and expression.

Justice Anand Venkatesh stated that reviewing new films on media platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter is part of that freedom and producers should not expect only positive reviews.

The judge also said that producers need to face the reality and cannot try to stop reviews. He clearly mentioned that the request made in the petition is not acceptable and the court cannot allow it.

He reminded the producers that many people now prefer watching movies at home on OTT platforms, which is a big change for the film industry.

During the hearing, the judge added, “Even I get criticized on social media. In today’s world, everything is reviewed, and we can’t stop that”.

He further questioned how such a ban could be enforced, saying it’s simply not possible. He concluded that social media has become too powerful to ignore and no one is free from public opinion anymore.