Hindu groups against a statue of 'Christian' Charlie Chaplin

New Delhi, Mar 18, 2009. - After decades moving to laughter, the figure of Charlie Chaplin is the surprising star of much controversy in southwestern India, where Hindu groups have boycotted the placement of a statue in his honor by being "Christian."
The statue, 20 meters, was to be built as part of a film on the beach Maravanthe, located in the Indian state of Karnataka, but the locals objected arguing that the "Christian" Chaplin remove importance to a temple Hindu nearby.
"It was a surprise to me, because he had obtained permission to build the statue on the beach," he told IANS agency director of the film, Hemanth Hegde.
Several intellectuals in the region have already reacted to the boycott of Chaplin and demonstrated this week in defense of the proposed statue of the comedian.
Many personalities "want to show their protest against these growing signs of intolerance of certain groups that are giving bad name to the region. His actions restrict the creative freedom of the film and theater directors, "said an aide to the director.
Hedge and other artistic figures of Karnataka plan to conduct a sit, but the director has already requested permission to install the statue in any other beach in the region for the shooting of his film, "Full House" to continue.
Meanwhile, a hundred people gave their online support to an initiative to ask the regional government, in the hands of the conservative Hindu BJP, which is imposed on the "great dictators" contrary to the statue, referring to the title of one of most popular films of Chaplin, "The Great Dictator".
The idea of Hedge was overlooking the car, leaving the statue on the beach after the filming of his film, which deals with the tribulations of two young men determined to please their girlfriends.
The villagers "are against the draft Chaplin and do not want a permanent statue, but accept that it was time for the shoot. And I am with them, "he told Efe on the phone a regional deputy district K. Laxminarayana, the BJP.
The issue Chaplin is a notch more than the battle between the sectors in Karnataka Hindu conservatives against advocates of liberalization of Indian society.
Last January, a group of activists from the radical Sri Ram Sena attacked several girls punches that were in a bar in the port city of Mangalore, accusing them of lewd behavior.
That attack raised a great dust sexist in India, to the extent that a central government minister warned of the "Talibanisation" of the Hindu radicals who came to demonstrate in the streets of that city.
And days later, liberals and radicals kept another pulse publicized story of St. Valentine, who condemn fundamentalists because they see a Western invention alien to Indian culture and traditions.
The Radicals said that would require married couples to hold wedding date so effusive, while liberal groups organized a curious network from sending massive pink panties to Sri Ram Sena headquarters as "Gift" Valentine.
These episodes of tension is no stranger came to power in the region of the BJP party, the political face of a thick fabric of Hindu organizations that have spread from India in recent decades.
But experts say the controversy is paradoxical: the Hindus who protested do not want the actor next to the temple because it was "Christian", but during his life Chaplin was always skeptical of all religions.

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