Mumbai: Swara has been a disciple of the Bharatanatyam guru and Padmashri Awardee Leela Samson since she was 7 years old. Since Samson became censor board chief and her mother Ira Bhaskar, a film studies professor at JNU, became board member Swara has followed the censor board’s travails with interest.
She has been impressed by her Guru’s liberal and progressive steps to shed the censor board of its image as corrupt and backward. She has also supported their decision to pass films like Aarakshan, and PK. With the current controversy involving the resignation of her guru and then her mother, Swara has risen to their defence supporting them on social media. She says she is proud of them both.
She said, “I am proud of my mother and guru Leela Akka. They are both women who have been my role models and imbued in me values of integrity, courage and hard work. I have way watched Leela akka work to bring a liberal and progressive vision to the censor board. I have seen the changes they have made to the functioning and image of the censor board. Akka has reached out to film makers to understand their perspective and problems. And that has reflected in the films that were passed and are being made. Her resignation and the resignation of this board is a great loss to our industry.”
