Christopher Nolan’s recent release, Oppenheimer, has sparked both controversy and success in India. The film, which features a reference to the Hindu holy text Bhagavad Gita, has intrigued Indians, but a sex scene featuring a quote from the scripture has also led to debate.
Ram Gopal Varma on Oppenheimer: Nolan’s films often have an Indian connection, with Dark Knight Rises and Tenet both being extensively shot in India. In Interstellar, Nolan imagined a future where India is a highly advanced country with drones.
Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma has taken a dig at citizens, wondering how many would have actually read the Hindu text. In a tweet, he wrote, “Irony is that an American nuclear scientist Oppenheimer read the Bhagavad Gita which I doubt even 0.0000001 % of Indians read.”
Irony is that an American nuclear scientist Oppenheimer read the BhagwadGeeta which I doubt even 0.0000001 % of Indians read
— Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) July 24, 2023
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While some people agreed with Varma that many haven’t read Bhagavad Gita to be proud of the representation in the film, others argued against him. One user wrote, “Truth be told, he makes a valid point.”
A scene in the film where Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) is seen reading the Hindu text while having sex has also led to debate. The same quote, ‘Now I Am Become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds’, is repeated just before the shockwaves of the Trinity test hits the observers in the camps breaking the defeating silence that preceded.
Despite the controversy, Oppenheimer has become a successful venture in India with tickets getting sold out days before the shows. The film is based on the autobiography American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin and is about the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, who is regarded as the father of the atomic bomb.