Respect Viewers’ Beliefs: Amazon Prime Apologises Post Tandav Row

Multiple complaints have been filed against the makers of web series Tandav for allegedly hurting religious sentiments.

(Photo: Amazon Prime Video)

OTT streaming platform Amazon Prime Video on Tuesday, 2 March, issued an apology over “certain scenes” in the recently launched show ‘Tandav’ which has been caught up in a storm of controversy in India for allegedly hurting religious sentiments.

In Tuesday’s statement, the company said that it “deeply regrets” that viewers found “certain scenes to be objectionable” in the series.

“This was never our intention, and the scenes that were objected to were removed or edited when they were brought to our attention. We respect our viewers’ diverse beliefs and apologise unconditionally to anyone who felt hurt by these scenes,” Amazon Prime Video said on Tuesday.

“Our teams follow company content evaluation processes, which we acknowledge need to be constantly updated to better serve our audiences. We will continue to develop entertaining content with partners, while complying with the laws of India and respecting the diversity of culture and beliefs of our audiences,” the statement further added.

The Matter So Far

Tandav, which features Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub in lead roles, has faced incessant backlash after BJP leaders alleged a scene in the show mocked Lord Shiva and hurt the sentiments of Hindus.

Several complaints have been filed seeking action against the show, including two separate criminal complaints before courts in Delhi and Bihar and an FIR in Lucknow’s Hazratganj Kotwali.

In January, Tandav director Ali Abbas Zafar had issued a statement of apology to viewers for hurting religious sentiments. In his statement, he stated that the series was fictional and that the cast and the crew had not intended to offend anyone.

"The cast and crew of Tandav take cognizance of the concerns expressed by the people and unconditionally apologise if it has unintentionally hurt anybody's sentiments," it added.

The makers of the web series also said they would make changes to the show "to address the concerns" over allegations that it has hurt religious sentiments. Zafar announced the news in a statement on Twitter saying that the cast and crew "apologise if the series has unintentionally hurt anybody's sentiments."

The statement read: "We have the utmost respect for the sentiments of the people of our country. We did not intend to hurt or 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' have made the decision to implement changes to the web series to address the concerns raised towards the same. We thank the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for the guidance and support in the matter. We once again apologise if the series has unintentionally hurt anybody's sentiments."