The Family Man, the series by Amazon Prime Video, faced another setback after the Tamil Nadu government wrote to Union Minister of Information and Technology Prakash Javadekar, seeking a ban of the show over its “condemnable, inappropriate, and malicious contents” which “depicts the Eelam Tamils in a highly objectionable manner”.
In its two-page complaint letter issued by the Department of Information & Public Relations, state Information Technology Minister T Mano Thangaraj said that the trailer was “aimed at discrediting and distorting the historical struggle of Eelam Tamils in Sri Lanka”.
“The sacrifices of their long drawn out democratic battle has been intentionally undermined and it could not, by any stretch of imagination considered merely as a Serial with any value for Tamil Culture. Moreover, a serial which is loaded could never be considered as the one having any broadcasting value,” the letter said.
#TheFamilyManOnPrime trailer out now.https://t.co/kwrn1eZVZY@SrikantTFM @PrimeVideoIN @rajndk @BajpayeeManoj @Samanthaprabhu2 @Priyamani6 @sharibhashmi @sumank @Suparn @shreya_dhan13 @hinduja_sunny @DarshanKumaar @SharadK7 @ishahabali pic.twitter.com/9CEqEGJVwY
— manoj bajpayee (@BajpayeeManoj) May 19, 2021
The letter was issued a day after Rajya Sabha MP Vaiko wrote to the Centre asking to ban the series. Previously, Tamil filmmaker-turned-politician and chief co-ordinator of the Naam Tamilar Katchi Seeman condemned the release of the show following a massive outrage by the social media users who began to trend #Familyman2_Against_Tamils soon after the trailer of the show’s second season released on May 19.
The nine-part series is created and produced by filmmakers Raj and DK, who have also directed the show along with Suparn S Varma. It is written by Suman Kumar and Raj and DK.
The backlash was triggered after the trailer showed Samantha Akkineni playing the role of a Sri Lankan Tamil rebel named Raaji. Taking offence to a scene that talks about a coalition between the “rebels and ISI”, many people criticised that the scene was derogatory for Tamils as it depicted them as terrorists. Further, some people claimed that the scene tarnished the image of Sri Lankan Tamils and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a militant outfit that fought for a separate state for Tamils and against the discrimination faced by the community in Sri Lanka.
தமிழர்களைக் கொச்சைப்படுத்தும் ‘தி பேமிலி மேன் 2’ இணையத்தொடரை ஒளிபரப்புவதை ரத்து செய்யாவிட்டால் மிக மோசமான எதிர்விளைவுகளைச் சந்திக்க நேரிடும்!https://t.co/5zWYIaXtAf pic.twitter.com/kQzb63Vqg7
— சீமான் (@SeemanOfficial) May 21, 2021
Stating an example that “branding a Tamil speaking actress Samantha” as a terrorist is “directly an attack on the pride of Tamils”, the letter said that such a “motivated and mischievous campaign” will not be “tolerated”. The minister pointed out that while the Eelam Tamil community are struggling for many decades now “to enjoy the fruits of equality, justice, peace, and dignity” in their country, it is “highly unwarranted” for Amazon Prime Video to take up the “smear campaign”.
The letter said that the series has not only hurt the sentiments of Eelam Tamils but also that of the people of Tamil Nadu and if broadcast, the series would be “prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony in the state”.
#RajyaSabha MP #Vaiko has written to Union I&B Minister asking for a ban on #TheFamilyMan2 series, as it has hurt the sentiments of Tamil People.. pic.twitter.com/Hg4wky8U1s
— Ramesh Bala (@rameshlaus) May 23, 2021
Although the streaming service has not responded to the controversy, creators Raj and DK in an interview with The Times of India reacted to the controversy and said that “assumptions and impressions” were made based on the trailer shots, and added, “Many of our lead cast members are key members of the creative and writing teams are Tamilians. We are cognizant of the sentiments of the Tamil people and Tamil culture and have nothing but the utmost love and respect towards our Tamil people.”
The second season of The Family Man will stream on Amazon Prime Video from June 4. Besides its lead actor Manoj Bajpayee, it also stars Priyamani, Devadarshini Chetan, Mime Gopi, Sharad Kelkar, N Alagamperumal, Anandsami, and Shreya Dhanwanthary. The first season of The Family Man premiered in 2019.
