Bollywood actor Ashutosh Rana has backed Naseeruddin Shah's recent comment on Bulandshahr violence. Speaking on the ongoing controversy surrounding Shah's comment, Rana stated that everyone has a right to share their thoughts.
"Everyone has the right to share his/her views. If someone speaks his mind in the country, does that mean there should be a social trial? We should seriously listen to him/her instead,” Rana said.
“If someone is speaking his mind and there is a debate, will it improve the country's economic situation,” he said.
Rana's remarks came two days after veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah's statement on mob violence in the country triggered a controversy.
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Actor Naseeruddin Shah had on Friday said that at many places, the death of a cow is being given more importance than the killing of a policeman.
Shah said "poison" has spread in the Indian society where at some places, the death of a cow is given more significance than of a police officer, an indirect reference to the recent Bulandshahr violence where a police officer was killed allegedly by cow vigilantes.
The actor raised concerns about the safety of his children who, he said, do not follow any specific religion.
"I had received regional education as a child. Ratna is from a liberal household, so she had next to none. And we chose not to give any religious education to our children. Because I believe that being good or evil has nothing to do with religion.
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The veteran actor also expressed anxiety over the well-being of his children, who he said have not been brought up as followers of any particular religion.
"We taught them what our beliefs are. I did make them learn a few verses from the Quran Sharif because I believe reciting them improves one's articulation, Just like one's Hindi articulation improves after reading the Ramayana and Mahabharata in its original (form)," he said.
Elaborating on why he feels anxious about his children, Naseeruddin said: "Because tomorrow if a mob surrounds them, and asks, 'are you a Hindu or a Muslim?'... They will have no answer. It worries me because I don't see the situation improving anytime soon.
"These matters don't scare me. They make me angry. And I want that every right-thinking person should feel angry, not scared. This is our home, who can dare to evict us from here?" he asked.
Shah's statement on mob violence triggered a massive controversy across the country.
(With PTI inputs)
