When Christian-born Nayanthara denied entry to Hindu temple, forced to apologise for misconduct [Throwback]

Nayanthara might be religious, but a free-minded person. She believes in the concept of the god, but has never restricted herself into 'one religion and one god' belief. So, despite born into a Christian family, the actress has regularly visited Hindu temples.

Why Nayanthara was Denied Entry?
However, not every time her temple visits have met with warm welcome. In 2009, Nayanthara ran into trouble when she had gone to offer prayers at Killikaavil temple in Kerala on Vishu (Malayalam New Year). During the shooting of her Malayalam movie Bodyguard near Ottappalam, the 34-year old had an unpleasant experience over her dress issue.

Reportedly, Nayanthara was wearing Salwar Kameez when she had gone to the temple. The authorities denied her entry for wearing the said costume and told her that women wearing sarees will only be allowed to offer prayers inside the temple.

Nayan was upset and tried to enter the temple, forcefully and there was heated arguments between her and the temple authorities. The devotees, gathered at the temple, surrounded her and asked her to give an apology for trying to break the rules of the temple.

Nayanthara, then, called the Bodyguard team members for her help and reportedly left the place after giving an apology for her misconduct.

Nayanthara's Version of the Story
Giving a clarification on the controversy, her manager Ajith Kumar had stated that the issue was not about the dress rather about a few youths teasing her in the temple premises.

Later, pro-Hindu outfit Hindu Makkal Katchi lashed out Nayanthara, who is now in a live-in relationship with Vignesh Shivan, and sent a saree to her to follow the Indian tradition while entering a temple. "We had warned such actresses several times earlier. As part of a decision taken recently to send sarees to actresses who dress like that, we sent one to Nayantara," Arjun Sampath, President of the group, was quoted as saying by The Times of India.

However, her manager denied receiving the saree from the Hindu outfit. "Neither me nor Nayantara have received any such parcel containing a saree,'' Ajith had said.