Amazon wants India to play a key role in its ambitions to conquer streaming video. But the company now faces a political backlash over one of its new original shows. Authorities are looking into claims that Amazon's new Prime Video series "Tandav" includes religiously insensitive content. Several Indian politicians say they have complained to the police or regulators about the company and the show's creators. The title is a political drama that has been likened to the hit Netflix series "House of Cards." It was released last Friday on Amazon's streaming service and boasts some of Bollywood's biggest names, including celebrity director Ali Abbas Zafar and actor Saif Ali Khan. The show follows a power-hungry politician who is willing to do anything to become the country's prime minister. It is loosely based on real political controversies that have erupted across the country as Hindu nationalism has grown. The show's depiction of some Hindu deities, though, has drawn ire from local lawmakers. Manoj Kotak, a member of parliament in Mumbai, said on Sunday on Twitter that he has written to the country's Minister of Information and Broadcasting urging him to "ban (the) controversial web series." The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, which has announced an intention to start regulating streaming services, said Monday that it had reached out to executives at Amazon about the show. "A discussion will happen on this," a spokesperson said. The series has prompted other lawmakers to go to the police. Ram Kadam, another BJP leader and local legislator in the state of Maharashtra, said he filed a police complaint in Mumbai over the weekend, accusing Amazon of intending to "outrage religious sentiments" and publish "material which can cause harm." Local police confirmed that they had received Kadam's complaint, but had not yet started an investigation. Police initiated a separate investigation on Sunday in the state of Uttar Pradesh against Zafar, as well as Aparna Purohit, Amazon's chief of Indian original Prime Video content, according to a media adviser for the state's chief minister. The series has also been hit by negative reviews on Amazon, which claim that the show promotes a "Hindu-phobic agenda" or comes across as "anti-Hindu." — Courtesy CNN
