Explained: Why are there calls for banning Oppenheimer in India?

Christopher Nolan's epic biopic on the American theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer was released globally on July 21, 2023, along with Greta Gerwig's Barbie competing for the box office collections. However, despite a roaring reception at the Indian box office, Oppenheimer has been facing calls for a ban in the Indian subcontinent by Hindu nationalists, leaving the nation as well as the diaspora scandalized.

Anurag Thakur, India’s information and broadcasting minister, has been passionate about the censorship of the intimate scene between Cillian Murphy's Oppenheimer and Florence Pugh's Jean Tatlock. Moreover, the recent call for the ban has intensified due to the involvement of the Bhagavad Gita, the Hindu religious text, in the scene.

The infamous line that the scientist reportedly used following the detonation of the first-ever atomic bomb was depicted during the 15-minute lovemaking scene between Oppenheimer and Tatlock. In the scene, the phrase that was used were the words of Lord Krishna to Prince Arjun, saying:

"Now I am become death, destroyer of worlds."

However, given the gravity of these words and their holy nature, the quote that was used during the lovemaking scene didn't sit well with many Indian viewers.

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Nolan's Oppenheimer faces controversy due to the inclusion of Sanskrit scriptures in the movie during an intimate scene

Oppenheimer is the first film by Christopher Nolan to include a lovemaking scene between the actors. With a score of 94% on the review aggregator, Rotten Tomatoes, the movie has been received with critical acclaim all over the world despite censorship or R ratings in Australia, India, the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia.

While all other countries looked at censorship owing to n*dity and explicit s*x, Indian right-wing members and leaders were aggravated by the use of Sanskrit scriptures in the prolonged nude scenes between Cillian Murphy and Florence Pugh. Murphy plays the titular protagonist who finds himself involved in an on-again and off-again affair with the Communist party member Jean Tatlock, played by Pug from the fame of Midsommar.

The Indian regulatory board, also known as the Central Board of Film Certification, has been playing a version of the film with a computer-generated black dress in the scene where a topless Tatlock has a conversation with Oppenheimer.

In one of the earlier encunters of the two characters, Florence Pugh's Tatlock is seen asking Oppenheimer to recite a few lines from the Gita after she grabs a copy of the Holy Scripture and makes him reads out the quote while she engages in getting intimate with him.

Commenting on the "unnecessary scene on life of a scientist," India’s Information Commissioner and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member Uday Mahurkar has addressed Nolan in a tweet, writing:

"We do not know the motivation and logic behind this unnecessary scene on life of a scientist. But this is a direct assault on religious beliefs of a billion tolerant Hindus, rather it amounts to waging a war on the Hindu community and almost appears to be part of a larger conspiracy by anti-Hindu forces."

Mahurkar has requested the deletion of the scene from the Indian copy and has further added:

"Should you choose to ignore this appeal it would be deemed as a deliberate assault on Indian civilisation."

Following this, many viewers have taken to Twitter to express their anger and frustration, echoing Manhurkar's words in their tweets.

Meanwhile, many Indian viewers have also come forward to counter the claims that necessitate Oppenheimer's ban in India. Journalist and social commentator Shobhaa De has expressed her admiration for the film and shunned Indians asking for the film to be reintroduced with a cut. Subsequently, the Indian filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma has also praised Nolan for his school of films while his tweet in support of the use of Gita in the film gained backlash.

Screenshot of Shobha De's tweet (Image via Twitter)

The film currently holds a U/A rating in India, which means citizens under 12 years of age are allowed viewership under parental guidance. It continues to play at the theatres and shall be available for online streaming in a while.