Naseeruddin Shah has courted controversy today by calling veteran actor and his co-star Anupam Kher ‘a clown’ and a ‘sycophant’. Shah extended his support to Deepika Padukone’s visit to the Jawaharlal Nehru University amidst the CAA/NRC protest and called it ‘courageous’. In a recent interview with a portal, Shah spoke at length about the ongoing protests against the CAA, the deafening silence of big Bollywood celebs and Deepika’s show of solidarity. However, his dig at Kher did not sit well with the Twitterati and neither with the actor as he gave a scathing reply in return.
Talking about Deepika, Shah said, “You have to laud the courage of a girl like Deepika who is in the top firmament and yet takes a step like this. Even if she has a lot to lose. Let us see how she takes it. She’ll lose a few endorsements, sure. Will that impoverish her? Will that lessen her popularity? Will that make her less beautiful than she is? They’re gonna come around sooner or later. The only god that film industry worships is money.”
#naseeruddinshah is what happens when we glorify actors/journalists/talkers over Doers.
Shame!
pic.twitter.com/mDRbKs33mH— Anuraag Saxena (@anuraag_saxena) January 22, 2020
Targeting Kher, Shah said, “Someone like Anupam Kher has been very vocal. I don’t think he needs to be taken seriously. He’s a clown. Any number of his contemporaries from NFD and FTII can attest to his sycophantic nature. It’s in his blood, he can’t help it.”
Kher did not take things lying down and shared a video on Twitter giving a befitting reply to Shah. Taking a jibe at Shah’s 'don't take him seriously' comment, Kher said that he or the other people Shah has criticized also do not take him seriously. Kher said that despite a successful and fulfilling career Shah lives in frustration and because of the ‘substances’ he is on he is unable to differentiate between right and wrong.
!!! pic.twitter.com/M4vb8RjGjj
— Anupam Kher (@AnupamPKher) January 22, 2020
In the video, Kher said that if Shah can criticize the likes of Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Virat Kohli then he considers himself lucky to have been added to the list. Meanwhile, Shah has ruffled the Twitterati’s feathers in a wrong way as well and netizens are mighty irked by his dig on Kher.
Spitting at the sun is the new age hobby of a few. Amused that #NaseeruddinShah, w/o any provocation, goes on to spew venom against @AnupamPKher for no reason. Btw, past alumnus of Naseer’s #HallOfHaters r Late #RajeshKhanna, #SRK, #AmitabhBachchan; it’s a luminous hall to be in. pic.twitter.com/t9B2wJSXrj
— Ashoke Pandit (@ashokepandit) January 22, 2020
Naseeruddin Shah has Completely LOST IT. Calling his very successful Colleague Anupam Kher- a well known versatile actor both in bollywood & internationally -a Clown & sycophant- only shows how frustrated Shah himself is. #NaseeruddinShah #AnupamKher pic.twitter.com/RtTKgQmohD
— Rosy (@rose_k01) January 22, 2020
Pakistan feels like home to him while he is scared of living in India
If so much love for the neighbours then why not go & settle there
India does not need gaddars like #NaseeruddinShah jo khaate hain Bharat ka aur gaate hain Pakistan ka
Doob marr Jihadi pic.twitter.com/SSXGNOqbdt— Archie (@archu243) January 22, 2020
Calling Anupam Kher a senile and sycophant,
Wonder how Naseeruddin Shah ever rates himself?#naseeruddinshah #AnupamKher pic.twitter.com/Nfh5BcEhrT
— Geetika Swami (@SwamiGeetika) January 22, 2020
(Source: Twitter)