Censor Board of Film Certification, the regulatory film body of India, regularly orders directors to remove anything it deems offensive, including sex, nudity, violence or subjects considered politically subversive. Film censorship becomes necessary because a film motivates thought and action and assures a high degree of attention and retention as compared to the printed words. Here's a list of movies which the Censor Board banned, due to some inappropriate content.

2. BANDIT QUEEN (1994)

Based on the life of Phoolan Devi, this Shekhar Kapur movie was banned due its explicit sexual content, nudity and abusive language, which the Censor Board could not (obviously) digest.

3. FIRE (1996)

Fire which dealt with lesbian relationship between two sisters-in-law in Hindu family, was banned by the Censor Board for its explicit content.

4. KAMA SUTRA A TALE OF LOVE (1996)

This Mira Nair movie, which depicted the lives of four lovers in the 16th century in India, was a hit with the critics but a major flop with the Censor Board and ultimately got banned.

5. URF PROFESSOR (2000)

What irked the Censor Board were the 'vulgar scenes' and 'bold language' used in this black comedy, which ultimately led to a ban on the movie.

6. THE PINK MIRROR (2003)

The Pink Mirror by Sridhar Rangayan is one such movie which brought the concept of trans-sexuality to the forefront. The story dealt with the quest of two transsexuals and a gay teenager to seduce a straight man. So was put to ban.

7. PAANCH (2003)

Paanch, an Anurag Kashyap movie, faced a lot of heat from the Censor Board. This movie was a thriller with high violence, language and drug abuse. The Censor Board decided to ban the film.

8. BLACK FRIDAY (2007)

Black Friday is a 2007 Indian crime film written and directed by Anurag Kashyap based on Black Friday – The True Story of the Bombay Bomb Blasts. Due to Bombay high court orders, this movie had to be banned.

9. PARZANIA (2005)

Even though the film won a National Award, its cinematic excellence was not considered enough for political parties to let it screen in Gujarat, where it was fiercely banned.

10. SINS (2005)

Sins is an erotic journey of a Kerala priest who falls for the charms of a woman and gets sexually involved with her. Filled with obsession, lust and his struggles with the norms of the society he lived in, Sins did not go down well with with the Catholics. They thought the film projected Catholicism in a very immoral light. The Censor Board too, had issues with the nude scenes in the film and hence the movie got banned.

11. WATER (2005)

Water is another Deepa Mehta movie which ended in a lot of controversy because of its dark insights on the life of the Indian widow. The script of the movie was written by none other than Anurag Kashyap. The movie was widely attacked by protesters.

12. FIRAAQ (2008)

Another film to deal with the Gujarat riots, Firaaq was reportedly based on true incidents which happened in the riot-torn Gujarat. Nandita Das was widely criticised for hurting the sentiments of Hindus and Muslims and ultimately the movie got banned.

13. GANDU (2010)

This Bengali movie was a rap musical which created a lot of buzz for its oral sex scenes and nudity. Shot in white and black format, the movie was banned because it 'defied Indian sensibilities'.

14. INSHALLAH, FOOTBALL (2010)

Inshallah, Football is a documentary about a Kashmiri boy who aspires to travel abroad and become a famous footballer someday. However, the boy is denied travelling outside the country because his father is charged with militancy. This film was intended to bring out the problems civilians face due to the insurgencies and militancy in the Kashmir Valley, but the purpose was defeated as it was denied the necessary censor certificate because of its sensitive subject.

15. DAZED IN DOON (2010)

Doon School is one of the most highly respected schools of the country. The Doon School had problems with the content of Ratna Pathak Shah's coming-of-age movie Dazed in Doon which depicted the story of a boy who is studying at the prestigious Doon School and the life he leads there. The school did not find it amusing to say the least and so the movie got banned.