Not long after k-pop girl band Blackpink broke a YouTube record for most number of views in a music video premiere with their song “How You Like That,” the group received complaints because of a particular prop used in the video—the statue of Hindu deity Ganesha.
A brief scene in the music video shows Blackpink member Lisa rapping with a statue of Lord Ganesha propped on the floor.
Fans were quick to notice and demanded for that scene to be removed.
No hate to the artists but our hindu religion and Gods aren't a toy/prop/aesthetic for pop culture music videos to use and this isn't even the first time hindu & desi (Indian+South East Asian) culture is disrespected!#YGApologise @ygent_official @ygofficialblink pic.twitter.com/MsJLm3iqnN
— ⟭⟬ ᵇᵗˢ ᶠᵒʳᵉᵛᵉʳ BTS PAVED THE WAY⁷⟬⟭ 💜🥰 (@tanies_stan) June 26, 2020
“No hate to the artists but our hindu religion and Gods aren’t a toy/prop/aesthetic for pop culture music videos to use and this isn’t even the first time hindu & desi (Indian+South East Asian) culture is disrespected,” one Twitter user said.
There was even a petition over change.org asking YG Entertainment to take down the music video and issue a public apology. More than 4,400 people have already signed.
After receiving so much flak over the issue, the people behind the entertainment group contacted YouTube and asked permission to edit the video without losing its current analytics.
Fans are now happy with the re-edit of the music video.
Thank you to all Indian and Non-Indian Kpop fans who supported us in our fight to safeguard our religion and culture, it wouldn't be possible without everyone's consistent efforts ❤️ #YGapologise #MyCultureIsNotYourAesthetic #BLACKPINK pic.twitter.com/i6OVLJAJDN
— Desi Kpopper (@DesiKpopper) June 29, 2020
The all-girl group has now reportedly amassed more than 100 million followers across several social media platforms.
.@BLACKPINK surpassed 100M combined followers worldwide on multiple social media platforms! (across YouTube, Spotify, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok & SoundCloud) 🔥 pic.twitter.com/s0SuMulrqW
— #HowYouLikeThat 𝗕𝗟𝗔𝗖𝗞𝗣𝗜𝗡𝗞 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗦 (@BLACKPINKSTATS5) July 3, 2020