Top Gear denies insulting Indian people

Published on Wednesday 18 January 2012 00:02

Senior editorial staff on the Top Gear television show have rejected claims that the special programme broadcast featuring India was insulting – claiming instead it was a “warts and all” portrayal of the country.

The Christmas edition led to Indian diplomats making a complaint to the BBC about what they regarded as a “disgusting” episode.

But programme chiefs say the show did not display a “hostile or superior attitude”. They said jokes were at the expense of presenters Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond rather than the Indian people.

The Indian High Commission in London wrote to the BBC to protest and viewers also complained.

But responding to the controversy for the first time Top Gear bosses said the road trip across India was “filled with incidents but none of them were an insult to the Indian people or the culture of the country” adding “It’s simply not the case that we displayed a hostile or superior attitude to our hosts.”