Tamil Nadu govt writes to Centre; seeks ban on release of Amazon Prime's The Family Man 2

With the growing outcry over season 2 of webseries 'The Family Man' even ahead of its release, the Tamil Nadu government has now lodged a strong protest with the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting against the web series produced by Amazon Prime India. In an official communication to Union Minister of Information & Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar, the Tamil Nadu government has claimed that the 'condemnable, inappropriate and malicious contents' of The Family Man - 2 depicts the Eelam Tamil community in a 'highly objectionable manner'. Claiming that the broadcast of the web series would be prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony in Tamil Nadu, the state government has sought a stay or ban on the release of The Family Man season 2, not only in Tamil Nadu but across India as well. 

"The sacrifices of their (Eelam Tamil) long drawn out democratic battle has been intentionally undermined and it could not, by any stretch of imagination be considered merely as a serial with any value for Tamil Culture. Moreover, a serial which is loaded with insults and insinuations against the glorious Tamil culture could never be considered as the one having any broadcasting value," the Tamil Nadu government said in its communication to Union Minister Javadekar. 

Tamil Nadu govt seeks ban on The Family Man S-2

Citing an excerpt from the trailer, the state government has said that branding Tamil-speaking actress Samantha as a terrorist is directly an 'attack' on the pride of Tamils living around the world. The State has also informed that the trailer of The Family Man - 2 has already evoked strong and widespread opposition from the people of Tamil Nadu as well as political parties in the state. 

"While our brethren Eelam Tamils are struggling for decades to enjoy the fruits of equality, justice, peace and dignity in the island nation, it is highly unwarranted for an organisation like Amazon Prime to undertake this kind of a smear campaign against the Tamils who are builders of India as well as many nations across the globe," the State government added. 

The Family Man season 2 release date

The hit Hindi web series 'The Family Man' starring Manoj Bajpayee will see the protagonist return as Srikant Tiwari in the sequel, along with Priyamani and Samantha in pivotal roles is directed by Raj & DK. It is expected to be released on Amazon Prime on June 4 this year. The show's trailer which was released recently shows Samantha as a Sri Lankan woman, who presumably essays the role of an LTTE member and someone with links to Pakistan and other terrorist outfits. 

Pertinently, the second season of The Family Man was supposed to be hit home screens earlier this year. However, a major controversy surrounding Tandav forced Amazon Prime to stay the release of the web series and review its contents before announcing the new release date. As per reports, the new release date i.e. June 4 was announced only after the contents were deemed to be 'safe'. Reports have also suggested that almost no scene or aspect of the original show shot had to be edited except some minor tweaks following the controversy that broke out. 

NMK issues warning to makers

Among those criticising The Family Man season 2 is Naam Tamilar Katchi, a Tamil nationalist party, chief Seeman. In his statement to the media regarding the matter, Seeman said that the footage featuring in the trailer is shocking. "It is obvious that the series, which portrays the LTTE as terrorists and seeks to portray Tamil people ​​as violent, is portrayed as such intentionally and the mere thought of broadcasting it is akin to causing violence against the Tamil community," Seeman has said. 

Seeman also warned the makers of the series that if refuse to pay heed to their demand and broadcast The Family Man 2 online, they will face the "worst possible repercussions" if the Tamil people are misrepresented. Notably, there is opposition not only to the web series but also against Samantha who starred in the series. Some have raised banners against the actor for allegedly insulting Tamil people and Tamil identity.