Kaali poster row: Regret hurting religious sentiments, no further plans to screen movie, says Canada's Aga Khan Museum

New Delhi: Amid the ongoing controversy over the poster of the Leena Manimekalai-directed film Kaali, Canada-based Aga Khan Museum on Tuesday tendered an apology for hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus.

The @AgaKhanMuseum cancels plans to host Kaali, “deeply regrets that [Kaali] and its accompanying social media post have inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities.” pic.twitter.com/T48eJziQHc

— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) July 6, 2022

In its statement, the museum said, “Toronto Metropolitan University brought together works from students of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, each student exploring their individual sense of belonging as part of Canadian multiculturalism for the project Under the Tent." “Toronto Metropolitan University’s project presentation was hosted once at the Aga Khan Museum on 2 July, 2022, in the context of the museum’s mission to foster intercultural understanding and dialogue through the arts. Respect for diverse religious expressions and faith communities forms an integral part of that mission. The presentation is no longer being shown at the museum,” the statement added. “The museum deeply regrets that one of the 18 short videos from ‘Under the Tent’ and its accompanying social media post have inadvertently caused offence to members of the Hindu and other faith communities,” the statement further added. Earlier, Toronto Metropolitan University had also issued a statement saying, “We regret that certain content in our Under the Tent presentation on Saturday, 2 July has caused offense and we are taking steps to address this.” The university said that the film Kaali would not be part of the further screening of the ‘Under The Tent’ event. “We recognise the short film has caused sensitivities and have no further plans to screen it at this time,” said the university. It is noteworthy that the High Commission of India in Ottawa had urged the Canadian authorities to withdraw the screening of an objectionable film named after Hindu Goddess Kaali. The High Commission said in a statement, “We have received complaints from leaders of the Hindu community in Canada about the disrespectful depiction of Hindu Gods on the poster of a film showcased as part of the ‘Under the Tent project at the Aga Khan Museum, Toronto.” With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.