"We've come to see the film because of the ban," is the refrain outside the hall. But they may well be disappointed. Fire, forced out of theatres last December because of Shiv Sena's outrage over its lesbian theme, has emerged from a second look by the Censor Board a pale shade of its old self. The film has been cut at innumerable places, worse, the names of the lead characters, Radha and Nita, have actually been deleted from the entire film!

"The film looks disjointed because it isdifficult to identify with two nameless women. The dialogues sound abrupt and you cannot figure out what happened. If you watch the film without knowing anything about it, it doesn't make any sense at all," says Chatura Dev, a first-time viewer. But the film's distributor, Shyam Shroff, still believes the cuts will not affect its outcome at the box-office. "People who are watching it for the first time may not notice the jerks. And finally all that matters is that the director's message should get through," he says. And many people walking out claimed they enjoyed watching it and felt the Sena outrage was uncalled for. "It's a film about something which has been hidden all this while.

Lesbianism is not alien to this land. It isn't unique to Europe or America, it is prevalent here as well," says Dawn, a college student. And interestingly, Kishore Kasare, a Sainik from Dahisar, also applauds Deepa Mehta's effort. "If you look at it from a woman's point of view, it's a very good film. It is not about sex andtitillation at all, and what it shows is absolutely real," he says.

But Narendra Khedekar, a Sena shakha pramukh from Buldhana doesn't quite share his view. "How can anyone like a film like this? It makes you feel like there's no need for men anymore, since women are able to manage everything on their own," he fumes.

Thus, the debate rages on, even as Fire limps into its second innings with two nameless lead characters and a spark that's more conspicuous by its absence.