Jaya Bachchan in 'anti-Marathi' remarks
Sunday, September 07, 2008
An off-handed remark by actress and Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan supporting the use of Hindi by north Indians in Maharashtra has snowballed into a controversy with the Shiv Sena and Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) launching a scathing attack on her.
At the promo of Hindi film Drona last night Jaya had said, “We are from Uttar Pradesh and should speak in Hindi.
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The Shiv Sena said, “People of Maharashtra will not tolerate such language from Jaya Bachchan,” MNS demanded an apology from her for insulting the Marathi people.
“Can she dare to utter such remarks in Assam, where people are killed for speaking in Hindi,” said a Shiv Sena leader, and added, “She should go to states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala and propagate Hindi there.”
Jaya Bachchan has reportedly apologized for her alleged “anti-Marathi” remarks at a recent film function in Mumbai, saying that she didnt intend to hurt the people of Maharashtra .
According to reports, Jaya has said in an interview to a newspaper that she was sorry if she has hurt the people of Maharashtra . She, however, clarified that she was misunderstood and that her comments were actually hinted at those Bollywood actors who despite working in Hindi films prefer to talk in English during interviews. She has also said that she can never insult Mumbai or the people of Mumbai because the city has given her everything.
Sonali said, Jaya Bachchan spoke in front of me. I was present there. And I could see that she did not mean anything like that. But yes, people have been hurt.
Mr and Mrs Bachchan have apologised and in the end, that is what matters. They said that if somebody was hurt, then we need to apologise. They are such senior people, with a body of work behind them. They are icons for me. And they are humans. They have been gracious and have apologised. We should be gracious and should accept it.