An Indian political drama on Amazon Prime was forced to edit scenes that were accused of being an “insult to the Hindu gods”, the first time that streaming platforms have been subjected to censorship by the Indian government.
Tandav, a courageous political drama by Amazon Prime, one of the largest streaming platforms in the world, has faced growing controversy since it was launched last week for claims that it had “hurt Hindu religious feelings” and insulted the Prime Minister’s office. minister.
A right-wing Hindu nationalist group, politicians from the ruling Bharatiya Janata (BJP) party and a BJP group representing members of India’s lowest castes were among those who had filed police reports against Tandav and Amazon Prime.
Tandav is the latest in a wave of bolder, more progressive and political Indian series that debuted on Netflix and Amazon Prime last year and faced a strong backlash from right-wing Hindu and BJP politicians.
The program’s censorship was seen as indicative of the shrinking space for creative freedom under the Hindu nationalist BJP government. In November, streaming platforms were brought under the control of the Ministry of Information for the first time, leading to fears that the content will be subjected to the same strict controls as traditional film and television platforms in India.
The director of Tandav, the Bollywood fort Ali Abbas Zafar, was attacked by scenes from the program that seemed to mirror the real-life religious and caste divisions in India, as well as to reference crime in Uttar Pradesh state and show the first- fictional minister acting in an “indecent manner”.
An adviser to Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, accused the creators of Tandav of “spreading hatred in the guise of cheap web series” and told them to “be prepared for prison”.
Zafar tried to ease tensions by issuing an apology, emphasizing that the show was “a work of fiction and any resemblance to acts, people and events is purely coincidental” and that no offense was made.
However, he was summoned by the government’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on Tuesday and agreed to “edit” the offensive scenes, the first time that the content on a streaming platform was changed under apparent pressure from the government.
“Tandav’s cast and crew made the decision to implement changes to the web series to address the concerns raised,” said Zafar in a statement posted on social media. “We thank the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for guidance and support in the matter. Again, we apologize if the series has unintentionally hurt someone’s feelings. ”Amazon Prime declined to comment.
Streaming platforms have invested billions in the lucrative Indian market and have built a reputation among Indian viewers for programming that is not afraid to deal with controversial or divisive issues, from sexual violence against women to community divisions between Hindus and Muslims.
Netflix and Amazon Prime have been credited with building a new international audience for Indian content and have won several Emmy nominations and victories, a first in Indian dramas.
However, several programs on the platforms, including Leila, Paatal Lok, Sacred Games and Rasbhari, have all been subject to police complaints from Hindu politicians and nationalist groups for offending religious or political feelings.
More recently, the BBC adaptation of Vikram Seth’s A Adequado Boy, which was made available on Netflix, was subjected to a police complaint by scene showing a Hindu girl and a Muslim boy kissing near a temple.
Shivraj Chouhan, the chief minister of the BJP of Madhya Pradesh, was among those who condemned Tandav and called for greater censorship. “No one has the right to disrespect our gods and goddesses,” he said. “In my opinion, we need to keep a close eye on OTT [streaming] platforms as they are displaying vulgar content. “