He said Bukit Aman had given its input on some scenes in the Tamil movie starring superstar Rajnikanth, and also advised on the disclaimer that appeared after the closing scene in the movie.

“Yes. We gave advice on parts of the movie that were shot here,” he said when commenting on a report which had appeared in the print edition of The Malay Mail yesterday that said police had a say in the removal of certain parts of the movie which was largely shot in Malaysia.

As a result, Malaysians also missed out on three other parts deemed unsuitable for viewers.

Film Censorship Board Chairman Abdul Halim Abdul Hamid said it was standard practice for police input in movies which contained elements of violence and gangsterism as well as when the Malaysian police are portrayed in the movie.

“We normally have our own police advisory unit in the censorship board, too. For certain movies that we feel need extra input from Bukit Aman, we will call them in for viewing,” he was quoted as saying by MMO.

“The final say, however, would be from us.” Halim added.

Kabali’s ending in Malaysia was slightly different to the version released in the rest of the world. Parts of the movie were also censored as police had felt the scenes would encourage gangsterism, according to the daily.

The final scenes of the movie shows Tiger, a youth played by Tamil Nadu actor Hari, being dragged out of a lock-up by a policeman, who then gives him a gun.

He then walks into a café and is seen approaching the hero Kabali, played by Rajnikanth, who is surrounded by a large crowd.

Just before the screen turns black, a gunshot is heard followed by the sound of the crowd shouting. It was not clear if Kabali had survived, let alone if he was hit at all.

That was how it ended for the movie originally and in the version showed overseas.

However, in Malaysia, the censorship board ordered the producers to add the line “Finally, Kabali surrendered to police” onto the black screen.

Halim said that the board had asked for the alteration to include a moral lesson that crime does not pay.

“Under our guidelines, there must be some kind of element of retribution in the movie, especially if the characters shown in the movies are involved in crime,” he said.

“So, we asked the producer to put in a caption. This was to send a message the law cannot be taken into your own hands.”

Censored scenes

Another scene that was removed showed Kabali being welcomed by the Malaysian police at the airport.

This was removed by the censorship board after Bukit Aman said police could not be seen as welcoming a gangster.

There was also an 18-second scene in which a gangster named Jeeva, one of Kabali’s right-hand men, is murdered in a brutal manner by rival members allied to the main villain Tony Lee (played by Taiwanese actor Winston Chao).

He is thrown from the second floor of a flat after his hands are chopped off with a parang.

Bottles are also thrown on his body from the second floor by the rival gang members. The scene was deemed disturbing for children.

Parts of the dialogue in a scene towards the end of the movie was also deleted. The scene showed a student telling Kabali that despite passing with flying colours in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examinations, as an Indian, she enjoyed fewer opportunities in the country.

She had also referred to the race-based quota practised in the education system here.

The dialogue in the movie was also scrutinised by the censorship board with filmmakers having to mute several derogatory terms and expletives used against the Malays, Chinese and Indians.

Malik Streams Corporation Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Abdul Malik Dasthigeer had said the company had applied for P13 rating and, as such, the scenes had to be deleted as per guidelines set by the Film Censorship Board.

He had said the company, which is the official distributor of the movie in Malaysia, had wanted the P13 rating – children under 13 are required to have parental guidance – instead of it being rated “18” to cater to “a larger audience”.

Children aged 18 and below are not allowed to watch movies rated “18”.

“The parts which were censored were three minutes in total. The movie’s storyline remains intact,” Malik had said.

The dubbed Bahasa Malaysia version, which will be released on Friday, will also be rated P13.

Directed by Pa Rajinth, the film features Rajnikanth as the titular character, a gangster who was released from prison after serving more than 25 years in jail.