Manoj Tiwari Slams Naseeruddin Shah For His Comment On The Kerala Story: 'Unki Niyat Achi Nahi Hai'

BJP Leader Manoj Tiwari on Thursday slammed veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah for his comments on the controversial film ‘The Kerala Story’.

Naseeruddin Shah had said that the success of 'The Kerala Story' is a dangerous trend and compared it with Nazi Germany. ( Image Source :Getty Images )

New Delhi: BJP Leader Manoj Tiwari on Thursday slammed veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah for his comments on the controversial film ‘The Kerala Story’. Shah had said that the film's success is a dangerous trend and compared it with Nazi Germany. Reacting to his criticism, Manoj Tiwari said that Naseeruddin may be a good actor, but his 'intent is not right'. 

In an interview with Aaj Tak, actor-turned-politician Manoj Tiwari said that if Naseeruddin Shah has problem with the film he can go to court. 

"He is a good actor but Naseeruddin ki niyat achi nahi hai (his intent is not right). I say this with a heavy heart. When films were made that showed a guy sitting at a shop and passing remarks about a woman, Naseer sahab (Naseeruddin) had nothing to say. It is very easy to talk. The way he has identified himself, it is not good as an Indian and as a human being,” Manoj Tiwari told Aaj Tak in Hindi. 

Earlier, in a conversation with India Today, Naseeruddin Shah had said, “Worthwhile films like Bheed, Afwaah, Faraaz, all three collapsed. Nobody went to see them, but they are flocking to see The Kerala Story which I have not seen, and I don’t intend to see, because I have read enough about it.”  

Calling it a dangerous trend, the actor compared it to Nazi Germany. “In Hitler’s time, the filmmakers were co-opted, attempted to be co-opted, by the supreme leader to make films praising him and what he has done for the countrymen, and running down the Jewish community," he told India Today.  

He also said that he hopes that things will change eventually. “On the flip side, I have hope that this atmosphere of hate gets fatiguing. How long can you go on spreading hate? I think and I hope that the way it has suddenly engulfed us all, it will also disappear. But it won’t be soon,” the actor added.  

Starring Adah Sharma, 'The Kerala Story' depicts how women from Kerala were forced to convert and recruited by the terror group Islamic State (IS). The movie, which has polarised the political discourse in the country, was released in theatres on May 5.