Nevada
(US),
(ANI):
Expressing
concern
at
the
recently
announced
animated
musical
Monkeys
of
Bollywood,
Hindus
have
urged
its
proposed
maker
DreamWorks
Animation
to
be
careful
in
handling
Hindu
concepts
and
terminology.
Distinguished
Hindu
statesman
Rajan
Zed,
in
a
statement
in
Nevada
(USA)
today,
said
that
since
the
reported
movie
announcement
claimed
it
to
be
"inspired" by
timeless
epic
Ramayan,
and
Ramayan
being
a
highly
revered
scripture
of
Hinduism,
film
should
stay
true
to
the
story
and
the
spirit
of
Ramayan.
Insensitive
handling
of
faith
traditions
sometimes
results
in
pillaging
serious
spiritual
doctrines
and
revered
symbols
and
hurting
the
devotees.
With
seasoned
and
skillful
professionals
at
the
helm,
we
did
not
expect
any
problem,
Zed,
who
is
president
of
Universal
Society
of
Hinduism,
said
and
added
that
they
were
just
urging
for
more
sensitivity
towards
faith
traditions.
If
DreamWorks
Animation
or
their
associates
in
this
film
needed
any
expertise
on
Hinduism
related
issues,
he
or
other
Hindu
scholars
would
gladly
provide
the
resources,
Zed
added.
Hindus
welcomed
Hollywood/Bollywood
to
immerse
in
Hinduism,
but
taking
it
seriously
and
respectfully
and
not
for
refashioning
Hinduism
concepts
and
symbols
for
mercantile
greed.
Hollywood/Bollywood
were
welcome
to
make
movies
about
Ramayan
but
the
final
product
should
be
the
true
depiction
of
it
and
not
a
fantasized
or
a
re-imagined
version,
Rajan
Zed
pointed
out.
Zed
argued
that
changing
Ramayan
to
fit
the
Hollywood/Bollywood
machine
was
likely
to
hurt
the
Hindu
sentiment
as
Ramayan
was
an
integral
part
of
Hinduism
and
was
held
in
such
reverence
that
Hindus
believed
that
simply
reading/hearing
of
it
showered
blessings
upon
the
reader/listener.
Ram,
the
hero
of
Ramayan,
was
incarnation
of
Lord
Vishnu,
and
was
worshipped
by
Hindus.
Hinduism
is
the
oldest
and
third
largest
religion
of
the
world
with
about
one
billion
adherents
and
a
rich
philosophical
thought
and
it
should
not
be
taken
lightly.
No
faith,
larger
or
smaller,
should
be
plundered,
Rajan
Zed
adds.
This
is
said
to
be
the
first
feature
musical
for
DreamWorks.
Directors
Paul
Mayeda
Berges
(What's
Cooking)
and
Gurinder
Chadha
(Bend
It
Like
Beckham),
lyricist
Stephen
Schwartz
and
Oscar
winner
composer
A.R.
Rahman
(Slumdog
Millionaire)
have
reportedly
teamed
on
Bollywood-style
Monkeys
of
Bollywood,
which
reportedly
revolves
around
two
monkeys.
DreamWorks
chief
creative
officer
Bill
Damaschke
and
development
executive
Chris
Kuser
will
reportedly
oversee
it.
Ramayan,
an
ancient
Sanskrit
scripture
that
consists
of
24,000
stanzas,
explores
various
themes,
including
human
existence,
concept
of
dharma,
etc.
DreamWorks
Animation,
which
claims
to
create
high-quality
entertainment,
reportedly
theatrically
released
21
animated
feature
films,
including
the
franchise
properties
of
Shrek,
Madagascar,
Kung
Fu
Panda
and
How
To
Train
Your
Dragon.
Roger
A.
Enrico
is
Board
Chairman,
while
Jeffrey
Katzenberg
is
CEO.