Why Don’t The Three Khans Of Bollywood Speak Up About Issues?

Mumbai: Know to speak his mind on issues and also give a rationale for his arguments, veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah recently faced flak on social media after he posted a video criticising some sections of the Muslim community in India for ‘celebrating’ the return of Taliban’s rule in Afghanistan.

He has now clarified what he meant by ‘Hindustani (or Indian) Islam’, and talked about the rise of propaganda films in Bollywood. Asked if he ever felt discriminated against in the industry due to his Muslim identity, Shah said, “I don’t know if the Muslim community is facing any discrimination now in the film industry. I think our contribution is far too important. In this industry, there is only one god, and that is Mammon,” The Quint quoted him as saying in an interview with NDTV.

As for his reference to the fact that some people were ‘celebrating’ the Taliban takeover, he admitted that ‘celebrate’ might have been the wrong word to use since there was no celebration.

“What saddened me was the fact that there are sections of the Muslim community, not only in India I assume but in other places as well, perhaps, who are in agreement…maybe I shouldn’t have used the word celebration because there was no celebration. And my statement was completely misunderstood.” He added that people from the Muslim community did criticise him for the statement and clarified that he is not ‘foolish enough’ to refer to people ‘en masse’.

“I also received pats on the back from the Hindu right wing for having said these things because they assume, ‘Here’s a Muslim attacking his own religion, how wonderful’. I don’t need any such commendation…I don’t need their congratulations.” Shah told NDTV, adding that he is sorry for those getting ‘rabidly angry’.

On the backlash he faced for the statement, Naseeruddin Shah said that people would’ve realised there was nothing to get offended about if they’d listened to his first statement.

“Women are being banned from sports, women will soon be banned from education, women will soon get banned from public life. I don’t think this is a desirable state of affairs anywhere,” he continued.

On discrimination in the industry