Veteran star Anupam Kher has joined the list of celebrities who have weighed in on the ongoing cancel culture in Bollywood.
During a press conference in Shimla on Monday, Kher talked about boycott trends on social media.
According to him, particular trends won’t impact a “good film.”
“I feel every day, many trends go on. But the trend you’re talking about, I don’t think a movie doesn’t work because of boycotting. Earlier people used to create controversies to make it run. Good films find ways to work,” Kher said.
He also apparently took a dig at Aamir Khan whose latest film “Laal Singh Chaddha” failed at the box office. The film faced a strong boycott trend ahead of its release on August 11.
While Kher believes that a boycott trend cannot majorly affect a film’s revenue, he, at the same time, taunted Aamir on the failure of the film by referring to his controversial interview about India.
“India is the most tolerant country in the world. We have freedom of expression and we all should respect it. As a responsible person, one should be careful about what to say. Millions of people follow you. When you make a careless statement about the country then it can sometimes boomerang,” Kher emphasised.
“Also, I want to mention that I have immense respect for Aamir Khan as an actor,” he added.
In 2015, Aamir Khan said in an interview, “Our country is very tolerant, but there are people who spread ill-will”. His wife Kiran Rao also made headlines for saying that she considered leaving the country for the safety of their children.
Reacting to the particular interview, Twitter users put up posts using hashtags such as #BoycottLaalSinghChaddha and #Boycottaamirkhan. The trolls also dug up when Aamir met Turkey’s First Lady Emine Erdogan while he was shooting for Laal Singh Chaddha there. Netizens were unhappy with the meeting as happened in the backdrop of Turkey’s increasing anti-India and pro-Pakistan stand.
The recent social media trends have got Aamir worried that he had to request people to watch his film.”That Boycott Bollywood… Boycott Aamir Khan… Boycott Laal Singh Chaddha… I feel sad also because a lot of people who are saying this in their hearts believe I am someone who doesn’t like India… In their hearts, they believe that… And that’s quite untrue. I really love the country… That’s how I am. It is rather unfortunate that some people feel that way. I want to assure everyone that it’s not the case so please don’t boycott my films, please watch my films,” Aamir said. (ANI)
