Saif Ali Khan-starrer Tandav's controversial scenes to be deleted

A still from Tandav

Last night, Tandav's creator and director Ali Abbas Zafar took to social media and wrote that they will make changes in the Saif Ali Khan and Dimple Kapadia-starrer "to address the concerns raised." The scenes featuring Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub in a stage play is said to have hurt religious sentiments. "We have utmost respect for the sentiments of the people. We did not intend to hurt or offend the sentiments of any religion or insult any political party or person," wrote Zafar. Several BJP leaders have demanded a ban on the Amazon Prime series.

In an interview with mid-day earlier, a source close to the Tandav team revealed, "The team offered to tender an apology, which appeared to satisfy the ministry for the time being. Soon after, the head honchos of the platform had another meeting with the key players of Amazon US, and drafted the official statement in consultation with them and creative stakeholders, including director Ali Abbas Zafar and producer Himanshu Sharma."

Earlier, in a media interaction, Sunil Grover, who plays a pivotal part in the digital show, shared, "First of all, this is a work of fiction. Politics, of course, is always a topic of conversation in our country. The show was shot last year, so a lot of things in it hadn't happened yet in real life. But they happened later. We discuss politics at home, it's a part of our lives. Because we live in a democracy, people actively participate in discussions around politics, and they'll relate to the show."

Tandav, a nine-episode political thriller, started streaming last week but the show landed in a huge controversy over its depiction of Hindu deities. In one of the scenes with Zeeshan Ayyub is shown at the centre of the row, in the role of college student Shiva, playing the Hindu god Mahadev in a theatre production. In an official statement, the team reiterated that they had no intention to hurt anyone's sentiments.

Tandav, starring actors Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia, Sunil Grover, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Dino Morea, Kumud Mishra, Mohd Zeeshan Ayyub, Gauahar Khan, and Kritika Kamra, premiered on Friday. Filmmaker Ali Abbas Zafar has created, directed, and co-produced the political drama.