It seems that Bengaluru citizens are finding it hard to accept Bollywood actress, Sunny Leone into the mainstream cultural arena. Recently, protests erupted in the city over the scheduled performance of the actress in a New Year bash on December 31. The resistance came from Karnataka Rakshana Vedike Yuva Sene, a pro-Kannada organization; the group fears that Sunny Leone’s dance performance is anti-cultural and it would corrupt the people of the city and the state.
The response of the group is not a mere objection, as it has threatened the mass suicides if Sunny’s performance is not canceled, reportedly.
Objections on Sunny Leone’s Dance
The primary complaint of Yuva Sene is that Sunny would dance in short clothes, which would be an assault on Kannada culture. The reports suggest that matter is taking a severe turn not only because of short dress that actress is likely to wear on the concert titled as “Sunny Night in Bengaluru NYE 2018”. What bothers the protestor is her past and where she comes from. The underlying motive behind such objections on behalf of the group indicates that Sunny is still struggling for her cultural acceptance. The identity she has embraced and wants to be identified with is not even tolerable for few sections of Indian society.
Do These Objections Have a Ground?
It is interesting to hear that protestors are seeing Sunny’s concert as cultural assault. The reason is that she has already become a mainstream actress after a successful career transformation. If her performance in Bengaluru concert is against the will of the public, then her success in Bollywood is just an illusion. Film producers are already signing her in films due to her rising popularity. According to 2016 stats by related websites, India was four largest market for adult content. Now the question arises, is it possible to preserve a culture in its original form by only banning a concert; especially in an era where the Internet offers access to anything.
Protests in India against Cultural Assault
Seeing the Sunny Leone’s dance performance as an assault on culture is not the only thing. Deepika Padukone has also become a victim as her film Padmavati faces allegations of misrepresenting the history. The tradition of Bollywood may seem fearless concerning filming of bold scenes, but it is not. Films that dare to speak against the social taboos have always faced resistance from the authorities as well as masses. Recently, released movie Lipstick under My Burkha met legal troubles for daring to talk about women fantasies and their issues.
But the response to Sunny Leone’s dance expected performance is lethal. We never knew that it was unacceptable enough to make people consider committing suicide.
