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Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has publicly criticised Mumbai University after being uninvited from a student event just hours before it was scheduled, calling the decision insulting and dishonest.
In a strongly worded article in the Indian Express titled "When a university speaks power to truth", Shah detailed how he was dropped from the Jashn-e-Urdu programme organised by the university''s Urdu department on February 1, allegedly without explanation or apology. According to Shah, he was informed late on the night of January 31 that his presence was no longer required. What followed, he wrote, was even more troubling, the audience was told that he had declined to attend. "The university, after informing me that I needn''t attend... decided to rub a little salt in by announcing that I had refused to be there," Shah wrote, rejecting the claim outright. The actor, who has frequently engaged with students over his four-decade-long career, said the event had held special meaning for him because of the opportunity to interact with young learners. He described teaching and engaging with students as some of the "most joyous and educational experiences" of his professional life, adding that he had gained more from such interactions than from formal teachers of acting. Shah suggested that the real reason for his disinvitation lay in his public criticism of the current political climate. Referring to comments reportedly made by a senior university official, he challenged the accusation that he "openly makes statements against the country," asking for evidence of any remark in which he had run down India. "Sure, I have never praised the self-proclaimed ''Vishwaguru''," Shah wrote, adding that he has been critical of the Prime Minister''s conduct and the actions of the ruling establishment. In the article, Shah expressed concern over what he described as shrinking freedoms, the treatment of student activists, and the broader social atmosphere, invoking George Orwell''s 1984 situation writing "not singing the praise of the "great leader" is considered sedition", to underline his unease with what he called constant surveillance and "24 hours of hate." "This is not the country I grew up in and was taught to love. The "thought police" and "doublespeak" have been deployed in full force, as has surveillance," he wrote. Recenty composer AR Rahman triggered widespread debate during an interview with the BBC Asian Network, where he discussed his reduced presence in Bollywood. Rahman attributed the shift to a transfer of power toward corporate, non-creative entities and hinted at "communal" undercurrents within the industry. The industry reaction was swift. While veteran Javed Akhtar argued that producers might simply be "scared to approach" a legend of Rahman''s stature, filmmaker Subhash Ghai defended his collaborator, claiming the remarks were "unnecessarily exaggerated." Amidst boycott calls, Rahman eventually released an Instagram clarification, reaffirming India as his "inspiration" and that his "intentions" were "misunderstood". "I have never wished to cause pain, and I hope my sincerity is felt. I feel blessed to be Indian, which enables me to create a space that always allows freedom of expression and celebrates multicultural voices," he said. (ANI)
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