New Delhi: The popular media services provider and production company Netflix is back in the news after a Shiv Sena member sought a ban on it. Ramesh Solanki, a member of Shiv Sena IT cell claimed that the shows on Netflix were “Anti-Hindu and anti-Indian Army, and hence anti-national”.
Solanki boasted about how the hashtag BanNetflix was on the top list of trends from 8 am to 1 pm on September 6. “Certainly people feel that something is not right,” stated Solanki.
When asked about why he filed the complaint, Solanki explained, “Many people came to me and said that the content on Netflix is bad. So I checked it out too and found many things objectionable. Which is why I approached the Mumbai police on the matter.”
He further added, “There are things about the Indian Army and Hindus that have been wrongly represented on the show. I don’t think anyone should be represented incorrectly.”
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On being questioned about the misrepresentation of other religions to which he replied, “They must speak up about it. I cannot speak for them. When Hindus are being misrepresented, it is my right to speak up about it.”
Solanki claimed that the platform was “portraying the nation in a bad light” and urged the police to “take necessary legal action” against Netflix for “hurting Hindu sentiments”.
“If not a ban, then there must be a regulatory body to check the content that is being aired on the platform,” he stated.
According to several media reports, a copy of Solanki complaint has been sent to Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and Mumbai police commissioner.
News 18 quoted Patrick Graham, a writer for the Netflix series Leila which is set in a dystopian future, denied the charge and claimed that the “depictions are purely fictional” and that the makers had “not hurt anyone sentiments”.
He further said that there was no point in banning stories and works of fiction. “If you want to criticize them then write about it or write another story. You cannot call for a ban on content in a democracy,” he said.
Ramesh Solanki retorted, “If the content hurts the sentiments of Hindus, then it must be banned.”