The depiction of Indian culture caused controversy and brought it to the attention of India's censors, who placed a temporary ban on it as it did not open in theaters. The film was later released when it came out on home video. The depiction of Indian cuisine was heavily criticized, as dishes such as baby snakes, eyeball soup, beetles, and chilled monkey brains are not Indian foods. Shashi Tharoor and Yvette Rosser have criticized the film for its portrayal of India, with Rosser writing " seems to have been taken as a valid portrayal of India by many teachers, since a large number of students surveyed complained that teachers referred to the eating of monkey brains."