Facing fresh row, 'Kaali' director Leena Manimekalai says, 'Hindutva can never...'
Leena Manimekalai tweeted a photo of two threatre artistes dressed as Shiv-Parvati smoking after their performance. The photo invited fresh trouble for her as many social media users thought the photo was from her documentary.
Filmmaker Leena Manimekalai who is facing several complaints in India for the poster of her documentary Kaali on Thursday tweeted a photo of two theatre artistes dressed as Shiv-Parvati smoking. The photo drew the ire of social media users who mistook the photo as a still from the characters of her controversial movies. "This is not from my film. This is from everyday rural India that these sangh parivars want to destroy with their relentless hate & religious bigotry. Hindutva can never become India," Leena Manimekalai tweeted after her post created a new controversy. Also Read | Kaali can't be destroyed: Filmmaker Leena Manimekalai as Twitter removes poster
"BJP payrolled troll army have no idea about how folk theatre artists chill post their performances," the Toronto-based director wrote.
The poster of her documentary featuring a woman dressed as Goddess Kaali and smoking has led to massive outrage. Complaints have been filed against the director in several states in India. Twitter in India has taken down her original tweet releasing the poster of the movie.
"Kaali cannot be lynched. Kaali cannot be raped. Kaali cannot be destroyed. She is the goddess of death," Leena Manimekalai said reacting to the action of Twitter.
Then the director posted the photo of some artistes dressed like Shiv-Parvati smoking and captioned it 'elsewhere'. The photo got misinterpreted and the director came under fresh attack.
Speaking to The Guardian, Leena Manimekalai said, "It feels like the whole nation – that has now deteriorated from the largest democracy to the largest hate machine – wants to censor me."
“In rural Tamil Nadu, the state I come from, Kaali is believed to be a pagan goddess. She eats meat cooked in goat’s blood, drinks arrack, smokes beedi [cigarettes] and dances wild … that is the Kaali I had embodied for the film," she said.
