Karnataka fringe outfit says Sunny Leone is a porn star, not a Hindu and she cannot play a warrior princess who is a symbol of Hindu values and traditions.
Bengaluru: A fringe pro-Kannada outfit, Kannada Rakshana Vedike (KRV), has threatened to disrupt a show that actress Sunny Leone is expected to perform in Bengaluru on 3 November, if she does not recuse from playing a fictional Hindu princess in the multilingual period war drama Veeramadevi.
The KRV’s youth wing, stating that “having a porn star representing a brave warrior Hindu woman” was an insult to every Hindu in the country, has claimed to have bought tickets for the 3 November show.
Speaking to ThePrint, R. Harish, the president of the KRV Yuva Sene, said if Leone does not withdraw from the movie, they will intensify their protests.
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“We will not allow the movie to be released at any cost. We have the backing of several Hindu organisations not just in Karnataka but also in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh,” he said.
“We will not allow a blue film actor such as Sunny Leone to portray such a brave lady. The warrior princess is a symbol of our Hindu values and traditions and we will not allow anybody to blemish her.”
The organisation has roped in the infamous Sri Ram Sene to help with the protests.
“She is a porn star, not a Hindu. How can she act as one of our bravest warriors?” Sri Rama Sene chief Pramod Muthalik said, adding that his organisation will provide all assistance to the KRV Yuva Sene for the protests.
“Sunny Leone is the name of a person who personifies indignity and vulgarity. We will not allow her to act in the movie,” he added.
Veeramadevi is Leone’s first full foray into South Indian cinema — she has earlier made special appearances in some scenes and songs. The film, currently in the works, is a period drama based on a fictional South Indian princess Veeramadevi.
It is to be released in a number of South Indian languages such as Tamil, Telugu and Kannada.
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Not the first time
Leone has had trouble with shows in Bengaluru earlier too. She was to perform in the city on 31 December last year, but the Bengaluru city police denied the event permission.
At that time too, the KRV had protested and threatened to disrupt the event.
The home minister at the time, Ramalinga Reddy, however, had claimed that they cancelled the programme as they would have to face uncontrollable crowds just like one witnessed when Leone visited Kochi.