The show's main organiser, Farhad Wadia of AMP Entertainment, criticised one of the three rules laid down by the Scrutiny Board.

``People, please keep your shirts on,'' he said, announcing the rule, and then boomed: ``I think this is a stupid rule. Do you want to know why? Because Mahatma Gandhi, father of the nation, went bare-chested, and he wasn't obscene at all. What do you think, people?'' To this, the crowd at Rang Bhavan roared out their approval.

``India is a hot country. All the performers here have to work hard, and it gets very hot under the arc lights. So removing a shirt is not obscene. It's just comfortable,'' Farhad, a veteran rocker himself, added, even as thepolicemen on duty stood looking on. Farhad also referred to the Sunday edition of The Indian Express, which had carried a report about the vulgar language used at the rock show in an earlier performance. He clarified on stage: ``TheIndian Express newspaper had an article saying that vulgar language was used by a certain band during a performance. We would like to say that what performers do onstage is beyond our control. We can explain and request the artistes not to use objectionable language, but that's about as much as we can say.''

Speaking to Express Newsline today, Farhad asserted that the reference to Mahatma Gandhi was very relevant. ``A shirt is a Western piece of clothing, and the Mahatma discarded it for the freedom struggle. And how does taking off one's shirt come under the purview of the Scrutiny Board? If at all the matter is to be handled, it should be done by the police. And if that is the case, even Ganpati festivals and Gokulashtamis, where most participants roambare-chested on the streets, should be considered obscene,'' he reasoned.

Adding that he had no objection to the other two rules of the Scrutiny Board -- not using any vulgar language and saying Vande Mataram at the show -- Farhad pointed out: ``I think saying **** you on stage is uncool. But why shirts? And considering that it was raining on all three days, it was only natural.''

Farhad even mentioned that he missed out on a rule that barred the audience from dancing. ``The next thing they'll do is tell us what to wear and eat. Where do they draw the line?'' he questioned.