Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi criticized Kamal Haasan’s claim that Hinduism did not exist during the Chola empire. On Friday, 7th October 2022, Abhishek Manu Singhvi said in a tweet that Tamilians adhered to Sanatan Dharma while acknowledging that the term Hindu may not have been in use at the time.
He also noted that the Cholas propagated the Hindu religion to many nations in addition to worshipping a number of Hindu deities, including Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. In a subtle jab at the actor-turned-politician Kamal Hassan, the Congress MP emphasized that the negation of religion is not a fundamental principle in Tamil Nadu.
Abhishek Manu Sanghvi said, “The term Hindu didn’t exist, but Sanatan Dharma was the foundation of early Tamils. Cholas worshipped Shiva, Vishnu & Durga & spread Sanatan to many countries. Denial of religion or God is not foundational in Tamilnadu. Yes, ritualism & religious elitism are rightly decried.”
The term Hindu didn’t exist, but #SanatanDharma was foundation of early Tamils. #Cholas worshipped Shiva, Vishnu & Durga & spread Sanatan to many countries. Denial of religion or God not foundational in #TN. Yes ritualism & religious elitism rightly decried. #KamalHasan
— Abhishek Singhvi (@DrAMSinghvi) October 7, 2022
Actor-turned-politician Kamal Hassan had jumped into the current row about the Chola king Rajaraja Chola. The controversy erupted after Tamil director Vetrimaaran claimed that the Chola king was not a Hindu. Kamal Hassan then said that there was no Hindu religion during the time of the Chola king.
Kamal Hassan said, “There was no name called ‘Hindu religion’ during Raja Raja Cholan’s period. At that time there were Vaishnavas and Shaivites. It was the British who coined the term ‘Hindu’ because they did not know how to express it collectively. It’s just like they turned Thoothukudi into Tuticorin.” Haasan further said that many religions and faiths were flourishing among the people in the eighth century.
Interestingly, an old video of Kamal Hassan’s interview with Karan Thapar is going viral on social media after this remark by the actor. In this video, he said that he used to spread the message of Christ to the world.
I was working with Christian Arts and Communication Center, spreading the word of Christ…to the world ~ Kamal Haasan pic.twitter.com/cS0iFaqPjq
— Anshul Saxena (@AskAnshul) October 6, 2022
While it is true that the term Hindu, used to describe the followers of Sanatan Dharma, didn’t exist at the time of Cholas, it does not mean Hinduism or the Sanathan Dharma didn’t exist at that time. The Chola kingdom had built several magnificent Hindu temples. Abhishek Manu Singhvi has now come ahead to refute the claims made by Kamal Hassan that there was no Hinduism in the Cholas regime.
