HINDU ACTIVISTS in southern India have blocked the erection of a statue of Charlie Chaplin for use in a film, claiming the comedian was a Christian.
Film-maker Hemant Hegde was building a 20m (67ft) statue of the Hollywood legend in the southern state of Karnataka for use in a backdrop to a dance routine in his new film, House Full.
But he said he was forced to halt work on the statue by a group of Hindu activists in the province, which is ruled by the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
“I’m really surprised that people would associate Chaplin with being a Christian and not allow his statue to be built,” Hegde said at the weekend.
Ironically, Chaplin was an agnostic. He is also a hugely popular figure across India.
But Hindu BJP legislator K Lakshminarayana from the coastal town of Udipi said there was no place for Chaplin in his region. “If locals are against such a statue, I am also against it,” he said.
“Why should anyone bother so much about Charlie Chaplin who was not even an Indian?” he added.
Hardline Hindus associated with the BJP routinely protest against the “invasion” of western culture into India, and have targeted St Valentine’s Day celebrations, public displays of affection by couples, and women drinking in bars. Last month, a group of young women were dragged out of a bar in Karnataka’s coastal town of Mangalore and beaten up as part of a morality campaign that shocked the country.
The proposed site of the Chaplin statue was close to a Hindu temple, giving the activists justification to protest against its construction. Television footage showed them filling in a pit that had been dug for the statue’s foundations.
Hegde said he had hoped to leave the statue behind after the shoot as a tourist attraction but was now scouting for a new location.