Row erupts over 'Muslim-like' Ganesh idol in Telangana; organisers point to 'Bajirao Mastani' as inspiration

A Ganesh pandal organised in Telangana's Secunderabad  in which the deity's idol had a "Muslim-like" appearance created controversy. 

The picture of Ganesh idol, dressed in green attire which went viral on social media, sparked a wave of backlash from users with several labelling it as "inappropriate" appearance

The organisers, however, clarified that the theme of the Ganesh pandal was inspired from the Bollywood movie 'Bajirao Mastani', which led to the misunderstanding.

India Today reported that Young Leo's Youth Association took inspiration from the attire worn by actor Ranveer Singh in Bajirao Mastani for the idol's dress. 

"We didn’t deliberately choose a Bajirao Mastani theme. Unfortunately, the way things unfolded led to misunderstandings. Our goal was never to hurt anyone’s feelings," a member of the organising committee was quoted as saying by India Today.

"We just want to move forward with our celebration of Ganpati Bappa. The execution wasn’t what we expected, but we don’t wish to escalate the situation," another committee member said.

However, the resemblance did not go down well with certain groups finding the representation inappropriate.

Several social media users alleged that the sentiments of Hindus were hurt by presenting Ganpati as a Muslim, while some praised the look, calling the theme an expression of secularism. 

An X account, 'The Jaipur Dialogues', who shared a video of the idol, questioned Lord Ganesha's appearance.

"This is the height of secularism. Why is Ganpati (the deity who is honored first in every Puja or Shubh Karya) presented as a Muslim in Hyderabad? Hindus are walking towards their own doom," it said.

"In Hyderabad, a Lord Ganesha idol was styled to resemble a Muslim, which is both offensive and an insult to Hindus. It has come to light that the theme of the pandal was based on secularism. Sadly, we Hindus have become a joke nowadays,” another user said.