A huge hue and cry was raised earlier this week when in a scene in the trailer of Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra Ranbir Kapoor was seen wearing shoes in a temple.
However on Sunday in an Instagram post Ayan Mukerji clarified that the venue shown in the film is not a temple.
Ayan writes, “We had some people in our community, upset because of one shot in our Trailer – Ranbir’s character wearing shoes as he rings a Bell. As the Creator of this film (and a devotee), I wanted to humbly address what happened here. In our movie, Ranbir is not entering a temple, but a Durga Puja Pandal. My own family has been organising a similar kind of Durga Puja Celebration for… 75 years! One, which I have been a part of since my childhood. In my experience, we only take off our shoes, right on the stage where the Goddess is, and not when you enter the Pandal. It is personally important for me to reach out to anyone who may have been upset with this image… because above all, Brahmāstra is created as a movie experience which pays respect to, and celebrates – Indian culture, traditions and history. That is at the heart of why I made this movie, so it is very important to me that this feeling, reaches every Indian who is watching Brahmāstra!”
While we are yet to know if Ayan’s explanation would satiate the protestors , Ayan and his producer Karan Johar should brace themselves for further protests in the months to come before the release of Brahmastra in September. Brahmastra is Ayan’s own individual interpretation of mythology and religion. Many would probably perceive his mix ‘n’ match approach to religion and philosophy as improper, maybe even blasphemous.Every revisionist work of art faces questioning.