Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The Grand Tour episode 4: Amazon heavily censor Jeremy Clarkson show in India due to use of 'cow organs'

'We keep Indian cultural sensitivities in mind while offering this content to customers

Jack Shepherd
Sunday 18 December 2016 07:03 EST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Last month, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May finally returned to our screens with the highly anticipated The Grand Tour.

The motoring show - the trio’s first since leaving Top Gear - was met with relative acclaim across the board, critics praising the presenters’ chemistry.

However, following the fourth episode reaching the Amazon Prime customers, there was controversy. The company decided to heavily censor the episode in India, cutting down the hour long length to just 30 minutes.

Censorship is common in the country, with sex scenes often blurred out or cut entirely, but - with just over half a programme being cut - Amazon has received several complaints about The Grand Tour in particular, one report calling the censorship ‘heavy handed’. The segment in question that was cut included 'cow body organs' being placed on a car.

Amazon has since defended the censorship, revealing that the cuts were made with ‘Indian cultural sensitivities in mind’, cows being held in high stature by numerous Indian communities.

Amazon is a responsible company and we are here to entertain the Indian customer with award-winning content from the US along with blockbusters from Indian and regional makers," the company told Mashable India in a statement. "We will keep Indian cultural sensitivities in mind while offering this content to customers.”

Meanwhile, The Grand Tour made headlines last week after reports detailed how the show was ‘the most illegally downloaded TV show in history’.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in