Unacademy, an online learning platform, is in the news for posting fictional and incorrect information on its website regarding the Martand Sun Temple in Kashmir.
This Temple in Anantnag district is dedicated to the Sun god. Built in the 8th century, it was destroyed by Islamic invaders. The temple is an ASI-protected monument and is believed to have been destroyed on the orders of Sultan Sikandar Shah Miri. The temple’s origins trace back to King Lalitaditya of the Karkota dynasty, which ruled Kashmir in the seventh century. The epic Rajatarangini, which details the history of Jammu and Kashmir, also mentions the influential Karkota dynasty.
What Did Unacademy State About Martand Sun Temple?
On their website, in the study material about the temple, Unacademy said that the Sun temple is also called “Shaitan ki Gufa“.
This temple was popularised as Shaitan ki Gufa or Satan’s cave/Devil’s cave in the Hindi film Haider. Director Vishal Bharadwaj shot the song Bismil here with the lead actor Shahid Kapur wearing scary costumes.
Travel blogger Anuradha Goyal and a few other nationalistic handles posted about this inaccuracy on social media platform X. They questioned Unacademy about whether the organisation was taking lessons from Bollywood.
Seriously @unacademy , Is Martand Sun Temple called Shaitan Ki Gufa or are you taking lessons from Bollywood fiction? pic.twitter.com/BzlG5OD6xT
— Anuradha Goyal (@anuradhagoyal) July 22, 2024
This is terrible @unacademy that you term the Martand Sun Temple as "shaitan ki gufa" ! Who's creating your educational content — Bollywood script writers ?? Shameful. https://t.co/1VJi7wMXVu
— Dr. Vikram Sampath, FRHistS (@vikramsampath) July 22, 2024
They are definitely taking lessons from Bollywood.
In the "Haider" movie Shahid Kapoor danced to the song ‘Bismil’ desecrated the sacred place and portrayed the ancient Martand Temple of Kashmir as "The Den of the Devil"
And now @unacademy is doing the same by calling the… https://t.co/FjeWxfeABb pic.twitter.com/9zyr6pHQkU
— Āryā_Anvikṣā 🪷 (@Arya_Anviksha_) July 22, 2024
Upon checking the study material on their website, it became apparent that Unacademy had silently changed the text, removing the reference to “Shaitan ki Gufa”.
However, neither their founder, Gaurav Munjal, nor the official handle of Unacademy, has posted anything in connection with this, and neither have they apologised so far.
It is noteworthy that the J&K government has initiated efforts to restore the temple and attempt to bring it back to its original glory.
Normalising Falsehoods Through Pop Culture
A grave falsehood such as describing a sacred temple as “Shaitan ki Gufa” is normalised through films and mainstream media. Our school textbooks are perfect example of how false propaganda of the leftists was peddled a few decades ago. Be it portraying Ashoka as a humane being or Akbar as someone who “planted trees on either side of the road for travellers to rest in its shade”. There is no proof that such things existed, and children and adults alike have been fed lies in the name of history.
This propaganda can be seen in Dravidian pop culture – literature and films. Tamil films depict the Brahmin as evil person and also ably enable the peddling of the Dravidianist ideology.
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