'Tandav' makers issued apology after a complaint in UP

New Delhi: The cast and crew of political drama 'Tandav' on Amazon Prime OTT platform issued an 'unconditional' apology on Monday after the Information and Broadcasting Ministry summoned the makers.

"The cast and crew did not have any intention to offend the sentiments of any individual, caste, community, race, religion or religious beliefs or insult or outrage any institution, political party or person, living or dead. The cast and crew of 'Tandav' take cognizance of the concerns expressed by the people and unconditionally apologize if it has unintentionally hurt anybody's sentiments," series director Ali Abbas Zafar shared the statement on his Twitter handle.

Meanwhile, a case has been filed in Uttar Pradesh against the producer of the web series alleging that some scenes had "insulted Hindu gods and goddesses" under Sections 153A (promoting enmity between groups), 295 (defiling place of worship with intent to insult religion), 505 (statement conducting public mischief), 469 (forgery on the purpose of harming reputation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections of the IT Act. Taking cognizance of complaints the I&B ministry sought an explanation on Sunday from streaming platform Amazon Prime Video on the issue.

Further, BJP MP Manoj Kotak wrote a letter to the concerned minister Prakash Javadekar seeking a ban on the series for ridiculing Hindu deities.

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati also demanded the removal of the objectionable portions from the show. In a tweet, she said that protests were being registered over some scenes of

the web series, which have hurt

the religious sentiments of people. So it would be appropriate to remove the objectionable portions.

BJP leader Ram Kadam on Sunday said that he has filed a complaint at Mumbai's Ghatkopar Police Station against 'Tandav'. Kadam said, "I have decided to write a letter to Union Minister Prakash Javadekar regarding this issue and will also mention that all the Over-the-Top (OTT) platforms must be brought under censorship."

Recently, the Cabinet decided to bring such OTT platforms under the ambit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, besides the online news and current affairs content. Hence, the ministry has the power to regulate policies and rules for the

digital space.