After staunchly defending his decision to play Adolf Hitler in an upcoming Bollywood film titled 'Dear Friend Hitler,' Anupam Kher has bowed out of the project. "Considering the ill-will that the project is generating among my fans, I wish to withdraw from it as I respect their sentiments," Kher said in a statement released to Reuters on Thursday, June 17, 2010.
"I have never been moved by commercial considerations, but I have always respected social opinions," he added.
Kher is currently in Edinburgh, Scotland shooting for Mausam.
Kher says the film's critics have not read the script, he has; the film doesn't glorify Hitler in anyway. The film's director Rakesh Ranjan Kumar echoes similar sentiments.
"Those who are protesting against the film have got it wrong," says Kumar.
However, according to the official synopsis of the film, it gives audiences a glimpse into Hitler's "insecurities, his charisma, his paranoia and his sheer genius."
Interestingly, the film has faced sharp criticism from European media, not so much from Indian media. India has a small (5,000) Jewish community. More importantly, Israel is the biggest supplier of defense equipment to India.
"Whoever is making this film is doing so with ignorant, if not more sinister motives ... they are hurting the feelings of a community that has suffered a great deal," Jonathan Solomon, the chairman of the Indian Jewish Federation, told Reuters.
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