AceShowbiz - Coldplay initially refused Jon M. Chu permission to use their song "Yellow" in his film "Crazy Rich Asians" for fear it would seem racist.

The soundtrack for the new movie features pop tracks with a Chinese twist, and the Asian-American filmmaker was keen to use the band's 2000 hit as he loved its lyrics and wanted to use it to subvert the colour's use as a racist slur towards Asians.

Although Jon convinced Crazy Rich Asians' producers to go along with his plan, he struggled to get Chris Martin and his bandmates on board as they were wary of a backlash.

The 38-year-old told U.S. website Quartzy that the band rejected his request until he wrote them an emotional plea explaining his reasons.

"For the first time in my life, it described the color (yellow) in the most beautiful, magical ways," Jon gushed when describing what the song meant to him. "The color of the stars, her skin, the love. It was an incredible image of attraction and aspiration that it made me rethink my own self image."

He added that granting him permission to feature it would provide "a whole generation of Asian-Americans, and others, the same sense of pride I got when I heard your song".

Within an hour of him writing to the band they responded and agreed, meaning Chinese-American YouTuber Katherine Ho could record a Mandarin version of the song - which is heard during the film's climax.

In the past, the band have faced accusations of cultural insensitivity and appropriation for borrowing music and imagery from Asian nations.

The video for their 2012 hit, "Princess of China", which featured Rihanna in traditional oriental clothes, drew strong criticism. They were at the centre of another controversy in 2016, as the video for Hymn for the Weekend was shot during the Hindu festival of Holi - with collaborator Beyonce clothed in traditional dress. The latter provoked particular outrage, as one Hindu leader accused the artists of treating their religion "frivolously".