Canadian museum apologises for depiction of Hindu deity after backlash in India

‘I have nothing to lose. I want to be with a voice that speaks without fear of anything until it is’

File A Hindu devotee dressed as Hindu goddesses Kaali dances during a procession on the occasion of ‘Maha Shivratri’ festival in Chennai (AFP via Getty Images)

A Toronto museum has apologised for featuring content by an Indian filmmaker depicting the Hindu goddess Kaali smoking a cigarette that “inadvertently caused offence” to some people.

The Aga Khan Museum said it has removed all the presentation of the documentary “Kaali”, directed by filmmaker Leena Manimekalai.

The museum said they hosted a event by Toronto Metropolitan University that brought together works of students from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds on 2 July to “foster intercultural understanding and dialogue through the arts”.

The movie was the submission among 18 short video filmns under the university’s “Under the Tent” project.

“Toronto Metropolitan University’s project presentation was hosted at the Aga Khan Museum in the context of the Museum’s mission to foster intercultural understanding and dialogue through the arts. Respect for diverse religious expressions and faith communities forms an integral part of that mission,” said the statement.

“The Museum deeply regrets that one of the 18 short videos from ‘Under the Tent’ and its accompanying social media post have inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities,” it added.

Their response came after the Indian High Commission in Canada urged Canadian authorities to immediately withdraw all “provocative material” related to the movie after the poster sparked an outrage in India.

“Our Consulate General in Toronto has conveyed these concerns to the organisers of the event. We are also informed that several Hindu groups have approached authorities in Canada to take action,” the statement read.

“We urge the Canadian authorities and the event organisers to withdraw all such provocative material,” it added.

The poster of the movie Kaali, a performance documentary, depicted the Hindu goddess smoking a cigarette. The background of the poster also showed her holding the pride flag of the LGBT+ community.

The poster by the director led to several people on social media saying it portrayed the goddess in a negative light and that it hurt their religious sentiments.

On Tuesday, police in capital Delhi and Uttar Pradesh state registered complaints against the director for the “disrespectful depiction” of Hindu gods.

Twitter also withheld the tweet by Ms Manimekalai which promoted the movie on Saturday.

Following the backlash she said on Twitter in Tamil: “The film revolves around the events that take place one evening, when Kaali appears and strolls the streets of Toronto. If you see the picture, you won’t put the hashtag ‘arrest Leena Manimekalai’ but ‘love you Leena Manimekalai’.”

“I have nothing to lose. I want to be with a voice that speaks without fear of anything until it is. If the price is my life, I will give it,” she added in another tweet in Tamil.

This comes as prime minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu rightwing government has been accused by critics of violating the rights of minorities and orchestrating the erosion of religious freedom in India. The US state department’s annual report on international religious freedom stated that religious minorities in India faced intimidation throughout 2021.

On Sunday, a Muslim eatery owner was arrested in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh for allegedly hurting religious sentiments by selling meat items wrapped in a newspaper with pictures of Hindu deities printed on them.