A Hindu leader in the United States has objected to comparisons between the Hindu god Krishna and the villain of the forthcoming superhero film X-Men: Apocalypse.
In the film's trailer, the blue-coloured villain Apocalypse, played by actor Oscar Isaac, says, "I have been called many things over many lifetimes -- Ra, Krishna, Yahweh." This has offended Rajan Zed, the president of the Nevada-based Universal Society of Hinduism, who said in a statement that such "trivilization of Lord Krishna, who was highly revered in Hinduism, was quite inappropriate and disturbing to the devotees."
The sequel to X-Men: Days of Future Past, X-Men: Apocalypse revolves around Apocalypse, who is described as the first and the most powerful mutant, who has been "worshipped as a god" since the dawn of civilization. Awakening after thousands of years, a disillusioned Apocalypse recruits a team of mutants to "cleanse" humanity and create a new world order.
Comparing #Krishna to villain #Apocalypse in #XMenApocalypse trailer was inappropriate. Delete references to Krishna unless scripture based.— Rajan Zed (@rajanzed) December 15, 2015
Zed has asked the film's director Bryan Singer to delete all reference to Krishna from the film and the trailer. "Lord Krishna was meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not for pushing movies for mercantile greed of filmmakers," he added. Zed has even offered his resources and expertise to train Hollywood executive in "religious and cultural sensitivity".
This isn't the first time that Zed has taken offense. In 2013, Zed famously demanded an apology from Selena Gomez for sporting a bindi on her forehehead during a performance at the MTV Movie Awards. In 2014, his protests caused Amazon to remove leggings carrying images of Hindu gods and goddesses.
X-Men: Apocalypse releases worldwide on May 27, 2016.