The sex scenes in ‘Oppenheimer’ are a subject to a lot of controversies not only worldwide but in India as well. The viewers of the movie were specifically shocked after watching the one scene where the central figure of the movie recites the verses belonging to the Hindu Holy book, Bhagwad Gita just before performing a sexual intercourse. The scene was only twenty seconds long but it gave birth to a chain of reactions from the orthodox Hindu Nationalists groups. The scene caused a series of outrages from the various parts of the Nationalists community throughout the country. The religious groups throughout twitter have been tweeting about how movie makers of “Oppenheimer” have taken the freedom to interpret the holy scriptures of Hinduism in their own way.
“This is a direct assault on religious beliefs of a billion tolerant Hindus, rather it amounts to waging a war on the Hindu community,” Uday Mahurkar, a senior official at the government’s Central Information Commission wrote to the movie’s director, Christopher Nolan. He, thereby tweeted in his twitter letter to Nolan, “The Bhagwad Geeta is one of the most revered scriptures of Hinduism. Geeta has been the inspiration for countless sanyasis, brahmacharis, and legends who live a life of self control and perform selfless noble deeds.” He also added, “We do not know the motivation and logic behind this unnecessary scene on life of a scientist. But this is a direct assault on religious beliefs of a billion tolerant Hindus, rather it amounts to waging a war on the Hindu community and almost appears to be part of a larger conspiracy by anti-Hindu forces.”
The movies are meant for enjoyment but sometimes they can be dragged into the territory of politics. Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a prominent right-wing organization, blamed the film authorities. He is confidently claiming a rightful assumption that the movie wanted to “launch an attack” on the society of Hinduism and demand for the scene to get censored or even cut. However, the fact that is ignored by everyone is that The Central Board of Film Certification rated the movie U/A, and viewers should adhere to the parental guidance rule of not allowing children under the age of twelve. Despite the controversies, the film has grossed 600 million rupees ($7.33 million) since Friday. “Oppenheimer” features the story of scientist J Robert Oppenheimer and his journey towards being a preserver and a destroyer.
“Oppenheimer” is currently streaming in theaters.