Director Mrityunjay Devvrat heaved a sigh of relief after receiving the approval of the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association (IMPPA) for the title of his film "The Bastard Child".

IMPPA had earlier rejected the title for being derogatory.

However, Mrityunjay then reapplied for approval and managed to persuade officials to approve his title. According to him, 'bastard' is a term merely used for a child born out of wedlock and not as an abusive connotation, said a statement.

Mrityunjay as well as his film's producer Soumya Devvrat believed in their content and hence suggested their title as extremely relevant.

On receiving this letter of approval, the director said: `I am elated and extremely grateful that IMPPA has reconsidered and cleared our title. The film would have been something else to me if it wasn't called 'The Bastard Child'.`

`It is a truly relevant title. It is a story about the Bangladeshis and their struggle for independence in the Liberation War. What these affected women have gone through is truly unimaginable. I am happy to see the support I have on this project,` he added.

Featuring actors like Farooque Sheikh, Pavan Malhotra, Raima Sen and Victor Banerjee, `The Bastard Child` is slated to release Dec 27 in India and on Dec 13 in Bangladesh.