Upset Hindus are urging Netflix to seriously rethink hosting of the upcoming anime TV show “Record of Ragnarok II”, which they have called “highly inappropriate” as it trivializes immensely revered Hindu deity Lord Shiva.
The official trailer and a poster of “Record of Ragnarok II” (directed by Masao Okubo) have been recently released and both of these show the presence of Lord Shiva in it. It is stated to be coming to Netflix in 2023.
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada, said that Lord Shiva was meant to be worshipped in temples and home shrines and not to be thrown around loosely or dragged around unnecessarily in anime TV series for mercantile greed.
Zed, who is President of the Universal Society of Hinduism, indicated that Hindu gods and goddesses were divine and entertainment companies were welcome to create projects about/around them showing their true depiction as mentioned in the Hindu scriptures. Inappropriately reimagining Hindu deities/concepts/scriptures/
Rajan Zed urged Netflix co-CEOs Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos to earnestly look into this issue before finally okaying the release of “Record of Ragnarok II”.
Zed stated that Hindus were for free artistic expression and speech as much as anybody else if not more. But faith was something sacred and attempts at trivializing it displayed callousness towards the feelings of adherents.
Besides hurting the sentiments, any misrepresentation created confusion among non-Hindus about Hinduism. Insensitive handling of faith traditions sometimes resulted in pillaging serious spiritual doctrines and revered symbols, Rajan Zed pointed out.
Zed further said that Hindus welcomed the entertainment world to immerse in Hinduism but taking it seriously and respectfully and not for refashioning Hinduism concepts and symbols for personal agendas. Attempts at distorting Hindu gods and goddesses would be slighting ancient Hindu traditions. He or other Hindu scholars would gladly help if the industry needed any assistance in exploring Hinduism, Zed added.
