Akshay Kumar, wife, accused of obscenity

Demonstrating the façade of strong conservative cultural overtones that still exist today throughout India, Bollywood star Akshay Kumar and his wife were reportedly accused of committing an obscene act during a recent fashion show.

A brand ambassador for Levi’s “Unbuttoned” line, Kumar was seen by attendees of last week’s Lakme Fashion Week walking down the catwalk before stopping in front of his wife, Twinkle Khanna, who was a member of the audience. Kumar allegedly asked his wife to come onto the catwalk and unbutton his jeans. According to reports, the act drew mixed reactions from the audiences.

A “social campaigner,” who was apparently in attendance, reportedly filed a complaint with the Mumbai police against Kumar, Khanna, the designer and the show’s organizers, calling the brief act “vulgar and indecent.”

Kumar subsequently apologized for the incident, according to reports. The Mumbai police stated violation of India’s obscenity laws may result in a prison term of up to two years and carries a $39 fine (2,000 rupees).

The most “notorious” case of obscenity occurred in 2007, when Hollywood actor Richard Gere publicly kissed Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty at an AIDS awareness event. Court-issued warrants were issued for Gere and Shetty before the case was eventually thrown out.

First-ever Indian/Kuwaiti Film

Kiran Kumar, Shakti Kapoor and Raja Khan will star in the Arif Kazi-directed Kahin Na Kahin Milenge Hum, the first-ever Hindi-language production to be filmed entirely in Kuwait, according to reports. The film is expected to be released in May. Kuwait has a substantially large Indian population, with about 600,000 people from the subcontinent residing in the Gulf nation -– the largest expatriate group in the country.

Kazi, who is the film’s co-director, has operated a Hindi theater company named Fankar Arts since 1993. He states Bollywood films have a large following in Kuwait, primarily due to the large South Asian population and general appreciation of the film industry among natives. Cottage film industries, such as non-Hindi productions featuring other major languages of Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam, are also screened in Kuwait. The largest proportions of Indians living in Kuwait are from the southern states of Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, where the aforementioned non-Hindi languages are spoken.