These drug-fuelled films would never have made it in Pahlaj Nihalani’s hands

Enter the Void (2009)

This French film, labeled by its maker Gaspard Noé as ‘psychedelic melodrama’ tells, in his words, “the story of someone who is stoned when he gets shot and who has an intonation of his own dream”. Apart from being ultra-engrossing, the film it incorporates a lot of first-person shots and CGI to reconstruct the actual experience of being on DMT. Here's that part:

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The story of the film, Udta Punjab has been a bit of a potboiler for film enthusiasts, especially Anurag Kashyap, who's put up a fierce fight (even as he gears up to release Raman Raghav 2.0 back to back). Everybody heaved a collective sigh as the narcotics drama got a green light from the Bombay High Court to release on June 17.

If Central Board of Film Certification of India head Pahlaj Nihalani had got his way, there'd be more than a urinating Shahid cut from the film. But, if he’d got his hands on these precious other gems from the west, we probably wouldn’t have Udta Punjab in the first place.

Midnight Cowboy

Begin with the pioneer: back when it was made in 1969, this film got an X-rating for its depiction of sex and drugs, and remains the only X-rated film to win at the Academy. Joe Voigt pops a pill, smokes some ganja and he’s then done into a twist of good luck. When the film was re-released, it was downrated to an R, and shows Dustin Hoffman in one of his finest roles as coughing, sputtering 'Ratso' Rizzo. P.S. Also a must watch, is Lenny, where Hoffman plays cussing, frustrated comedian Lenny Bruce, who eventually dies of an O.D.

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Easy Rider

While we’re on landmarks, we highly recommend the cult classic, Easy Rider. This almost political film featured critique of late 1960’s America (as much as it was a portrayal of the rainbows and frolic of the hippie movement) and was decidedly anti-establishment - an entirely Pahlaj-unfriendly mix. It preceded a wave of bold new filmmaking in Hollywood, carried forth by the likes of Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese. Oh, and this is the film that turned Jack Nicholson’s career around and also got him his first Oscar nomination.

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Trainspotting

Based on the novel of the same name by Irvine Welsh, Trainspotting follows a group of unambitious heroin addicts in economically depressed Britain in the late 1980s. Made by Danny Boyle, it was a pop culture phenomenon by itself, touted the defining film of the era. More than two decades later, its sequel T2: Trainspotting 2 is slated for release next year.

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