Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, July 5: Mahua Moitra, a member of the Trinamool Congress, spoke out in favour of Canadian director Leena Manimekali on Tuesday. Leena is the target of social media backlash (and police FIRs in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh) after a poster for her next movie “Kaali” showed the goddess smoking. In the same image, Kali is also seen clutching a rainbow flag in one hand, which is a well-known emblem of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer pride.
“You have the freedom to imagine your goddess,” said Moitra.
“To me, Kaali is a meat-eating, alcohol-accepting goddess. There are some places where whiskey is offered to gods and in some other places it would be blasphemy,” she added.
The Trinamool chief was responding to a query regarding her opinion of this debate.
Notably, the Indian High Commission in Toronto requested that the posters be taken down after the poster depicting the goddess Kali smoking incited outrage on social media.
Manimekali and two other people who collaborated on the movie were accused by police in UP on Monday of ‘criminal conspiracy, offence in place of worship, intentionally hurting religious sensibilities, (and) intention to instigate disruption of peace.’ Delhi Police has also registered a case for allegedly offending Hindu sentiments.
