The Star reported that the movie, which opened over the weekend, has a different ending in Malaysian cinemas, compared to the version shown worldwide — courtesy of the Malaysian Film Censorship Board (LPF).
The original version shows a character called “Tiger” in the movie, being dragged out from a lockup by a policeman, who then gives him a gun to shoot Kabali.
“Tiger” is then seen walking up to Kabali at a cafe before the screen turns black and a gunshot is heard.
The Malaysian version meanwhile, has a disclaimer on the black screen: “Finally, Kabali surrendered to the police.”
This different ending has created a buzz on social media.
Commenting on this, LPF chairman Abdul Halim Abdul Hamid said that movies shown in Malaysian cinemas must include some element of retribution.
“In this movie, he (Kabali) takes the law into his own hands.
“If you do something against the law, like killing someone or becoming a gangster or a Mat Rempit, there must be an ending that shows that this person has regretted, repented, was arrested, or surrendered to the police,” he was quoted as saying.
He said the changes were done according to LPF guidelines.
Apart from the climax, several other scenes, deemed violent, were also shortened, and some unsuitable words, muted.
One of the muted dialogues has Taiwanese actor Winston Chao, who plays the antagonist to Rajnikanth’s protagonist Kabaleeshwaran, using the word “keling”, which is considered derogatory to Indians here, against the latter.