Coldplay's latest music "Hymn For The Weekend" finally released on Jan. 29 after much hype and anticipation. Featuring Indian star Sonam Kapoor and Hollywood diva Beyonce, the video was seemingly shot with an intention of celebrating Indian mystic hues, but it has sparked a debate on social media for all wrong reasons.
The latest release is the single from the band's seventh album "A Head Full of Dreams." The four-minute 20-second video shows the band's lead singer Chris Martin taking cabs around the city that is seemingly swarmed with saffron-clad sadhus and people celebrating Holi and Diwali on the streets.
While Beyonce is playing a Bollywood actress with the poster of her latest film "Rani" on the billboards, the Indian actress is shown moving around in traditional ethnic wear as a commoner. While Queen Bee has possibly never set foot in India for the making of this video, seeing as she only appears to perform in front of a green screen, Coldplay have spent suficient time in the country and immersed themselves in the culture for the making of the video, BBC reported.
Since the release of the video, it has received both flak and praise for the way they have represented India. While some Twitter users have slammed the video for showcasing the country in poor and irrelevant light like shots of the majestic ruins overgrown with weeds, others are calling it a "Slumdog Millioniare" sequel with a Holi sequence.
Several online users have even questioned the necessity of Queen Bee playing the role of an Indian actress.
On the other hand, fans of the daughter of "Slumdog Millionaire" actor Anil Kapoor, who were earlier excited over the news of her appearing in a Coldplay video, were reportedly disappointed to find her in just a blink-and-you-miss-it eight-second cameo.
Meanwhile, Sonam is set to appear in a biopic named "Neerja." The movie is about the life of Neerja Bhanot, the young Indian flight attendant who had fought savagely to save the lives of 359 passengers on a hijacked plane.
"I am thankful that I got this opportunity to play this role. I only hope this film reaches everyone," Times Of India quoted Sonam as saying. "Neerja" will release on Feb. 19.
Meanwhile, watch Coldplay's "Hymn For The Weekend" below: