A film poster showing an actor dressed as the goddess Kali with a cigarette in her hand has roused the anger of a few people who say it offends their Hindu beliefs. But is she a Hindu goddess at all? Yes and no, says Professor R. Mahalakshmi who teaches at Jawaharlal Nehru University.

In a podcast interview with Sidharth Bhatia, Mahalakshmi says she is worshipped in different parts of the country but everywhere, Kali is known to be someone who does not conform to social mores. “She is definitely a non-Aryan deity and not part of any Brahminical traditions.”

“It is a needless controversy and the political dimension is unmistakable,” Prof Mahalakshmi says.

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