NEW DELHI – Bollywood superstar Priyanka Chopra apologised on Sunday aftera furore over an a US TV series that showed her uncovering a terror plothatched by Indian Hindu nationalists.
The episode of spy thriller *Quantico* showed Chopra’s character, an FBIagent named Alex Parrish, thwarting the plan and noticing one of theterrorists wearing Hindu prayer beads.
The terrorists had tried to frame Pakistanis for the attack planned aheadof a summit on Kashmir, a disputed Himalayan territory that arch-rivalsIndia and Pakistan claim as their own.
Kashmir has been a source of historical tension between the nuclear-armedneighbours who have fought two wars over it.
The episode, aired on June 1, triggered outrage in India with many fanstaking to social media to “shame” the Indian-born actress and calling her a“traitor”.
Chopra, a former Miss World, said she was “a proud Indian and that willnever change”.
“I’m extremely saddened and sorry that some sentiments have been hurt by arecent episode of *Quantico*,” Chopra, 35, wrote on Twitter.
“That was not and would never be my intention. I sincerely apologise.”
ABC Studios, the producers of the crime drama, have also offered an apologywhile defending Chopra who is the lead actor of the show.
“The episode has stirred a lot of emotion, much of which is unfairly aimedat Priyanka Chopra, who didn’t create the show, nor does she write ordirect it,” US media quoted the studio as saying in a statement.
“The show has featured antagonists of many different ethnicities andbackgrounds, but in this case we inadvertently and regrettably stepped intoa complex political issue. It was certainly not our intention to offendanyone.”
Chopra has been trolled on Twitter since the telecast and a street protestwas also held in New Delhi on Saturday by a fringe Hindu outfit thatdemanded she be sent to Pakistan as a punishment.
“Sell outs like her are an insult to India. She consciously consented forthe act. Shame,” tweeted Jagriti Shukla, a journalist.
The government “should cancel @priyankachopra passport & should not allowher to enter our nation… Let her stay in Hollywood & lick Pakistan boots.Traitor,” Sumit Kadel, a film critic, said on the site.
Chopra, the first Indian to headline a US network series, is hugely popularamong Indian fans and feted for having made it in the Western entertainmentindustry.
But recently she was criticised by Hindu hardliners for visiting RohingyaMuslims and ignoring persecuted Hindus during her visit to Bangladesh as aUnicef goodwill ambassador.
She was also accused of disrespecting Indian sensibilities by wearing adress that exposed her legs during a meeting with Hindu nationalist PrimeMinister Narendra Modi in Berlin last year.
Chopra, who is one of the highest-paid Indian actors, featured last year in*Baywatch*, based on the television series of the same name.