Veteran lyricist and screenwriter Javed Akhtar has weighed in on the controversy surrounding singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh’s latest film ‘Sardaar Ji 3’, which features Pakistani actress Hania Aamir. The film, whose trailer dropped recently, has sparked backlash online due to its timing—amid heightened India-Pakistan tensions following the Pahalgam terror attack.
Javed Akhtar supports Diljit Dosanjh amid Sardaar Ji 3 controversy
In a recent interview with NDTV, Akhtar came out in support of Diljit, referring to him as “bechara” (poor thing) and urged authorities to take a more empathetic view of the situation. “Ab kya kare bechara. The movie was shot earlier. Usko pata toh nahi tha ki aisa hoga. Iss mein Pakistani aadmi ka paisa toh nahi doobega, Hindustani ka paisa doobega. Toh phir kya faayda (What can the poor thing do.? He didn’t know something like this would happen. The monetary loss will be of the Indians and not of the Pakistanis),” he said.
Javed pointed out that the film had already been completed before the April 22 terror attack, and that the situation is being unfairly projected onto Diljit and the film’s team. According to him, the actor wouldn’t have gone ahead with casting a Pakistani actress had he anticipated the political fallout.
“Usko pehle pata hota yeh hone wala hain, toh woh thodi na leta Pakistani actress (had he known something of this sort would happen, he wouldn’t have chosen a Pakistani actress) ,” Akhtar explained. “I think the government and the censor board should look at the situation with a little sympathy. And say that don’t do this again, but since you made this film before, then release it. But it should not happen again.”
Also read: Diljit Dosanjh Not Dropped From Border 2 Amid Sardaar Ji 3 Row
India-Pakistan tensions
The political climate has been particularly volatile since the Pahalgam incident, which led to India’s Operation Sindoor involving strikes on terror camps in Pakistan and PoK. Following the escalation, several Pakistani celebrities, including Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan, Atif Aslam, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, and Hania Aamir. faced bans on their social media accounts within India.
Despite the backlash, ‘Sardaar Ji 3’ was released overseas on June 27. Directed by Amar Hundal, the film also stars Neeru Bajwa, Gulshan Grover, and Sapna Pabbi alongside Diljit and Hania.
