‘Scathing attack on Hinduism’: Intimate scene in ‘Oppenheimer’ featuring Bhagavad Gita sparks outrage

 

Mumbai : Christopher Nolan’s latest directorial ‘Oppenheimer’, which hit the theatres on July 21, has received rave reviews from fans and critics alike but it has also hurt the sentiments of many Indian viewers over a sex scene featuring a copy of the Bhagavad Gita, considered a holy scripture by the Hindus.

A section of social media users vented their outrage and slammed the makers over the scene. ‘if this was a scene in a Bollywood film, theatres screening it would have been burned down’, a Twitter user wrote. ‘Art knows no boundaries, but Oppenheimer’s Bhagavad Gita scene tests the limits of creative expression’, another one wrote. Further, Uday Mahurkar from Save Culture Save India Foundation penned an open letter to the makers of ‘Oppenheimer’, saying the scene featuring a copy of the Bhagavad Gita scene has hurt religious sentiments. He also urged the Union Information & Broadcasting Ministry to take necessary action.

His letter read, ‘It has come to our notice that the movie ‘Oppenheimer’ contains a scene which makes a scathing attack on Hinduism. As per social media reports, a scene in the movie shows a woman making a man read Bhagwad Geeta aloud while indulging in sexual intercourse. She is seen holding a copy of the Bhagwad Geeta in one hand’. He added, ‘We do not know the motivation and logic behind this unnecessary scene in (a film based on the) life of a scientist. But this is a direct assault on (the) religious beliefs of a billion tolerant Hindus’.

‘We urge, on behalf of billion Hindus and the timeless tradition of lives being transformed by revered Geeta, (the makers) to do all that is needed to uphold the dignity of our revered book and remove this scene from the film across the world. Should you choose to ignore this appeal, it would be deemed as a deliberate assault on Indian civilisation. Eagerly await needful action’, he added.

The biopic, set during World War II, follows Oppenheimer, known as the ‘Father of the Atomic Bomb’. The film has a topline cast comprising Cillian Murphy in the title role, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, and Jack Quaid.