Anti-water brigade performs mock funeral of Oscar award jury

Varanasi, Jan 23 (UNI) Youths who stalled the filming of Deepa Mehta's 'Water' in 2000, here today performed the mock funeral of the Academy Award jury, which nominated the film based on plight the of Hindu widows for Oscar.

Led by their president Arun Pathak, the Kranti Shiv Sena (KSS) led activists carried out the mock funeral procession of the Oscar jury from the Assi Ghat to the Janaki Ghat -- on the banks of Ganga river -- and later set afire the symbolic effigy of the Academy award jury.

The KSS activists also tonsured their heads and performed the 'Pind Daan' at the riverfront to symbolically mark the last rites of the award jury.

''By nominating Water for the coveted Oscar the Academy Award jury has exhibited that it is in favour of those movies which paint the Indian culture in black. We will protest this move vigorously,'' Mr Pathak said.

He further said that the women wing of the KSS will self-immolate if the film, falsely narrating the plight of Hindu widows in Kashi.

is allowed to be screened in Varanasi.

The KSS, earlier a part of the Shiv Sena, had in 2000, stalled the filming of Water in Varanasi. The entire film crew, including Deepa Mehta, Shabana Azmi and Nandita Das were forced to leave the holy city without shooting the film, which was later shot fully in Sri Lanka.

UNI