New Delhi: Naseeruddin Shah is one of the best actors in India. Apart from acting, he is also popular for his controversial statements. Naseeruddin Shah now says that he is upset that films like ‘The Kashmir Files’ are very popular these days. The film Kashmir Files, which shows the truth about atrocities against Kashmiri Pandits, had become a hit one. He also said that he gets angry when ‘mullahs’ say something about tennis star Sania Mirza wearing a skirt. He expressed his views openly in front of the people while promoting his directorial venture ‘Man Woman Man Woman’. Naseeruddin Shah was talking to Free Press Journal.
He said, “In fact, I haven’t seen films like ‘The Kerala Story’ and ‘Gadar 2’ yet, but I know what it’s about. It is very painful that films like ‘The Kashmir Files’ are so popular, while films made by Sudhir Mishra, Anubhav Sinha and Hansal Mehta, which try to show the truth, are not seen by anyone. The important thing is that these filmmakers should not get frustrated and continue to tell true stories. After a hundred years, people will watch ‘Bheed’ and ‘Gadar 2′ and know which film speaks the truth of our times, because the films is the only medium that can do that.”
Naseeruddin Shah further said, ‘Loving your country is not enough. You have to make noise and also create an imaginary enemy. These people do not see that what they are doing is very harmful. The more chauvinist you are, the more popular you become, because they are running the country.”
Naseeruddin Shah also responded to Islamic fundamentalists’ comments about Sania Mirza wearing a skirt and burqa, saying, “Purdah does not mean turning a woman into a shapeless bundle so that no one can look at her. That means you don’t look where you shouldn’t. That’s why I got angry when Mulla criticized Sania Mirza for wearing a skirt while playing tennis. Why are you looking at her skirt? It means you are guilty and dirty minded – said Naseeruddin Shah.
Naseeruddin Shah also mentions about his family in the interview. He said, “When I was 10 years old, I asked my mother which school you studied in. Mother said no one sent her to school. Amma was the second of her grandmother’s 15 children. I believe they did nothing but have children until they were 35. They got married at 14 and had their first child at 15.
The film ‘Man Woman Man Woman’ is Naseeruddin Shah’s second film as a director.
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