Adipurush director Om Raut sparks controversy as he kisses Kriti Sanon at Tirupati temple

Controversies around the upcoming film Adipurush refuse to die down. Now, the film's director Om Raut is being criticised for his recent action. Raut sparked controversy on social media after a video of him kissing Kriti Sanon, the lead actress in the film, on her cheek went viral. While the gesture seems harmless, it is the premise that many people have raised objections to.

In the video, Raut can be seen bidding goodbye to Sanon as the latter leaves the premise of Tirupati temple. The team of Adipurush, including the film's leading man Prabhas launched the film's trailer at Sri Venkateswara University Stadium in Tirupati.Tirupati is a city in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The city is home to the important Hindu shrine of Tirumala Venkateshwara Temple and other historic temples.

Controversy erupted when Om Raut and Kriti Sanon visited the Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirupati on Wednesday morning. As they were exiting the temple premises, Raut gave Kriti a goodbye kiss on her cheek as she left in her car. The gesture has not gone down well with certain people including Ramesh Naidu Nagothu, the BJP State Secretary in Andhra Pradesh.

“Is it really necessary to bring your antics to a sacred place? Engage in public displays of affection, like kissing and hugging in front of the Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirumala is deemed disrespectful and unacceptable," tweeted Nagothu but later deleted the tweet.

There were others who defended Raut and pointed out that there was nothing wrong with the way Raut bid Sanon goodbye.

"Is it bad to give a kiss to our friend in Tirumala?," asked an internet user. "See nothing wrong with it.. What is so controversial about this? A goodbye kiss on cheek by a dear friend."

One of the internet users wrote, "There is no vulgarity in om rout gesture but of course, if vulgar people would like to see it that way they will, just like you." A netizen wrote, "Your mindset is inappropriate."

Director Om Raut refrained from commenting on the viral video but wrote on social media about his visit to the temple. “After coming to the temple, I feel extremely amazing. It felt nice. We had a great darshan today morning. Yesterday, we put out the trailer. It’s a mesmerising feeling and I cannot put it into words," Raut wrote.

Controversies around Adipurush

A cinematic adaptation of the Indian epic Ramayana, Adipurush has been courting controversy ever since the film's first teaser came out last year. Fans had raised objections to the depiction of Raavan in the film- being played by actor Saif Ali Khan. Then earlier this year, an FIR was filed against the makers for the incorrect poster.

The complaint stated that the religious sentiments of the Hindu society were hurt by the makers as they had inappropriately displayed the characters of the Hindi religious text Ramcharitmanas in the new poster of the film.

Directed by Om Raut, Adipurush has Prabhas playing the role of Raghav in the film, Kriti Sanon will play Janaki and Sunny Singh as Lakshman. The film also stars Saif Ali Khan as the antagonist, portraying Ravana. Adipurush is reportedly the biggest film in Prabhas’ career. It is a mythological drama that has been made on a reported budget of Rs 500 crore. Adipurush will be releasingin cinemas on June 16, 2023.

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