e-Paper
Police in Madhya Pradesh have filed a case against two Netflix officials for allegedly hurting religious sentiments, after a member of India's ruling party objected to scenes in the web series A Suitable Boy, in which a Hindu girl kisses a Muslim boy against the backdrop of a Hindu temple.
The series is based on an English novel by one of India's leading writers Vikram Seth and follows a young girl's quest for a husband.
It is directed by celebrated Indian filmmaker Mira Nair.
"It has extremely objectionable scenes that have hurt the feelings of a particular religion," said Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra.
"On the basis of a complaint by (the national secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha) Gaurav Tiwari, an FIR has been registered under section 295 (A) (malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in Rewa (district) against Netflix officials Monika Shergill and Ambika Khurana."
Ms Shergill is the vice-president of Netflix India while Ms Khurana is the director of public policy at the streaming platform.
"I've directed police officers to get this controversial content tested to determine what legal action can be taken against the producer-director of the film for hurting religious sentiments," added Mr Mishra.
Mr Tiwari, a leader of the youth wing of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which also governs Madhya Pradesh, has filed a separate complaint against Netflix and warned of street protests by Hindus if the series is not taken off the platform.
"Kissing scenes (filmed) inside a temple of Lord Maheshwar (at a historic town located on the banks of Narmada) have hurt sentiments of Hindus. This is also encouraging 'love jihad'," he said.
"Love jihad" is a term used by Hindu nationalists who accuse Muslims of luring Hindu women to marry them and forcing them to convert to Islam to change India's demographic balance.
A Netflix India spokesman declined comment on the police complaint. The series' writer and crew have not reacted. Director Nair told NDTV earlier that she is used to trolling.
Social media commentators say the scope for creative freedom is narrowing in India, especially when it involves any depiction of Hindu-Muslim relations.
Many Indians took to Twitter demanding a boycott of Netflix, which sees India as one of its most promising growth markets but where its shows have faced legal challenges.
Last month, a unit of India's Tata conglomerate withdrew a jewellery advertisement featuring a Hindu-Muslim family celebrating a baby shower, following threats to one of its stores and wide criticism on social media.
Netflix is not likely to face serious legal trouble, experts said. But the campaign puts pressure on the streaming service at a time when the government is increasing censorship of what Indians watch online.
Earlier this month, the Indian government announced rules to regulate content on video streaming platforms including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Walt Disney's Hotstar.
Reuters, Indo-Asian News Service
