[Religion News Service] Hanuman’s emergence as a pop-culture icon shows West is waking up to Hinduism

The article titled “Hanuman’s emergence as a pop-culture icon shows West is waking up to Hinduism” on the Religion News Service website discusses the increasing recognition of Hinduism in Western pop culture, particularly through the depiction of the Hindu deity Hanuman .

The article highlights the movie “Monkey Man”, directed by British actor Dev Patel, which premiered at the South by Southwest festival¹ The film is a revenge action thriller that introduces American audiences to Hanuman, the Hindu deity in monkey form. Hanuman has also made appearances in the 2018 blockbuster “Black Panther” and its sequel “Wakanda Forever”, as well as Pixar’s Oscar-nominated short, “Sanjay’s Super Team”.

Dev Patel, who is Hindu, wanted his movie to highlight India’s social inequalities and was fascinated by Hanuman’s superhero mystique. He compared Hanuman’s iconography to that of Superman and expressed his wish for the world to know about it. The film also explores Hanuman’s qualities of devotion, loyalty, valor, and strength, as well as his moments of weakness.

The article also discusses the evolution of Hinduism’s depiction in popular media, which has often been distorted and fictionalized. It mentions the controversy surrounding the character of Apu in “The Simpsons”, which led to a documentary about discrimination against Hindus and people of South Asian descent. The article suggests that the positive depiction of Hindu ideals in films like “Monkey Man” indicates a shift in the West’s understanding and acceptance of Hinduism.

Source: Conversation with Bing
Hanuman’s emergence as a pop-culture icon shows West is waking up to ….
https://religionnews.com/2024/04/01/hanumans-emergence-as-a-pop-culture-icon-shows-west-is-waking-up-to-hinduism/.