Following the recent hostilities between India and Pakistan in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack and the subsequent Operation Sindoor, Lyricist Javed Akhtar spoke about facing abuse from extremists on “both sides” and that he would choose to go to hell if he had to make a choice between Pakistan and hell.
Addressing a gathering at the launch of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut’s book Narkatla Swarg (Heaven in the Swamp) in Mumbai on Saturday, Javed Akhtar said he receives a lot of praise, but abuses as well from “extremists” on “both sides”.
Without elaborating on what the two sides are, he said: “What happens is that if you speak only on behalf of one side, you make only one side unhappy. But if you talk on behalf of everybody, you make a lot more people unhappy. I can show you my Twitter (now X) and WhatsApp in which abuses are showered on me from both sides. A lot of people appreciate me as well, praise me and help me keep my spirits up, but it is also true that extremists on both sides swear at me. This is how it should be, because if one side stops, I will start wondering what I am doing wrong.”
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“One side tells me you are a ‘kaafir’ and you will go to ‘jahannum’ (hell) and the other side says you are a jihadi and should go to Pakistan. Toh agar mere paas sirf choice Pakistan aur jahannum yani nark ki hain toh main nark hi jaana pasand karunga (So if I have the options of choosing between Pakistan and hell, I would like to go to hell),” he added.
After the Pahalgam terror attack, Javed Akhtar had urged the central government to take strict action against Pakistan for its alleged connections to the attack. He called out Pakistan fo spreading propaganda that Kashmiris identify themselves as Pakistanis.
“This is a lie. When Pakistan had attacked Kashmir after Independence, Kashmiris had stopped them for three days, our Army reached only after that. The truth is they can’t live without India. What has happened (in Pahalgam) has hurt them the most. Tourism has taken a hit. Kashmiris are Indians and 99% of them are loyal to India,” he said.
Apart from being a Bollywood lyricist, Javed Akhtar has also served as a Rajya Sabha member from March 22, 2010 to March 21, 2016. He was nominated by the then President Pratibha Patil.
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