Twitter erupts after Indian filmmaker shows Hindu goddess Kaali smoking: 'Why only with Hindus?'

DAYS after a controversial remark against Prophet Muhammad by a former member of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sparked a massive controversy which even had repercussions beyond the international border, a fresh row has emerged in the Hindu-majority nation and this time, a goddess of the majority community is at the centre of the discussion.

On Saturday (2), film director Leena Manimekalai tweeted the poster of her new film ‘Kaali’ described as a “performance documentary” and it showed a woman dressed as Hindu goddess Kali and smoking a cigarette.

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Hundreds of Hindus have lashed out at Manimekalai since the poster was shared online and accused her of offending their religious sentiments.

Kali is a widely worshipped goddess in India. They also slammed the filmmaker for showing Kali with an LGBT flag.

On Monday (4), Manimekalai’s name trended on social media as many sought her arrest. #ArrestLeenaManimekalai trended on the social media platform as well. Police reports were filed against the filmmaker and one social user asked how they could use

The Tamil Nadu-born filmmaker, port and actor, who is currently studying in Canada, told the BBC that the goddess she depicted in her film “champions humanity and embraces diversity”.

“As a poet and filmmaker, I embody Kaali in my own independent vision,” she said.

Manimekalai is among 18 graduate students who were chosen under a programme managed by Canada’s Toronto Metropolitan University for works on multiculturalism.

The film, according to her, is a “candid shoot” of herself dressed up as the Hindu goddess and walking in downtown Toronto.

“In my film, Kaali chooses me as a spirit, holds a Pride flag and a camera in her hands and meets the First Nations (indigenous people), the People of African, Asian, Persian descent, the Jews, the Christians, the Muslims and the mini-universe that one can capture across any cross-section of Canada,” the filmmaker was quoted as saying by the BBC.

It is not the first time that a deity has featured in a film of Manimekalai. Her 2007 documentary ‘Goddesses’ was screened at film festivals in Mumbai and Munich. ‘Maadathy - An Unfairy Tale’ is a 2019 film by Manimekalai which is about a fictional story of how a young girl hailing from a marginalised caste group is immortalised as a deity, BBC added.

Here is how the Twitter reacted to the controversy: