PATHETIC! When Amrish Puri Was Called ‘ANTI-NATIONAL’ For Playing Mola Ram In 'THIS' International Movie (Details Inside)

In the fifth and last installment of the series, ‘Harrison Ford, 80’, will make one last appearance as the enduring figure. ‘Raiders Of The Lost Ark’, the first installment, revolutionised the action-adventure genre when it was released in 1981. Many of the iconic action pictures that appeared later, including ‘The Mummy’, ‘Tomb Raider’, ‘Jumanji’, and others, were somehow influenced by or reminded viewers of the Indiana Jones films. As evidenced by the subject matter and aesthetics of films like ‘Naksha’, ‘Ram Setu’, etc., even Indian cinema has been inspired.

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In fact, Mahesh Babu's upcoming film with ‘RRR’ director S. S. Rajamouli follows in the footsteps of the franchise. K V Vijayendra Prasad, the film's writer and father of Rajamouli, recently stated,

It's interesting to note that the second movie in the series, ‘Indiana Jones’ And ‘The Temple Of Doom’ (1984), had its main action take place in India and shocked the locals with its themes. It depicts Dr. Jones arriving in India by accident and encountering helpless locals who implore him to locate a mysterious stone that had been taken from their temple by a strongman from a Thuggee sect that engaged in child enslavement, black magic, and human sacrifice in homage to the goddess Kali. Amrish Puri's character Mola Ram served as the main adversary.

Several Indians were shown in ‘Indiana Jones’ and ‘the Temple of Doom’ as being uncivilised and barbarous. The males of royal blood are seen feeding on snakes, spiders, and monkey brains in a dinner scene that is set in a palace! Before sacrificing victims in the most horrible fashion, Mola Ram is seen taking their hearts from them.

There was no surprise that the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) decided to outlaw Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Furthermore, the government refused to even approve the shooting in India due to concerns regarding the narrative and the usage of the word "Maharaja." The India portions were then filmed in nearby Sri Lanka.

Even though ‘Indiana Jones’ and ‘the Temple of Doom’ was never made available in India, rumours regarding its insulting depictions of Gods and content quickly spread. As anticipated, Amrish Puri received criticism. He was even referred to as "anti-national," and in his book, he addressed this incident. He wrote. “It was a chance of a lifetime working with Steven Spielberg, and I don’t regret it even for a moment. I don’t think I did anything anti-national; it’s really foolish to take it so seriously and get worked up over it.”

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Amrish further wrote, “It's based on an ancient cult that existed in India and was recreated like a fantasy. If you recall those imaginary places like Pankot Palace, starting with Shanghai, where the plane breaks down and the passengers use a raft to jump over it, slide down a hill and reach India, can this ever happen? But fantasies are fantasies, like our Panchatantra and folklore. I know we are sensitive about our cultural identity, but we do this to ourselves in our own films. It's only when some foreign directors do it that we start cribbing.”