'No such thing': Arun Govil dismisses Rahman's communal bias claims
What's the story
BJP MP and actor Arun Govil, who played Lord Rama in Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan, has dismissed Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman's claims of a communal bias in the Hindi film industry. Speaking at an event organized by the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) and Cine Artiste Welfare Trust (CAWT), Govil said, "In our industry, it has never happened where people have not got work due to communal bias."
Industry inclusivity
Govil cited examples of Muslim actors in Bollywood
Govil further said, "There are examples of this in our industry. In our industry, people of every religion have worked. Even today, there is no such thing." He added, "Earlier, we've had actors like Dilip Kumar... Even today Shah Rukh [Khan], Salman [Khan], Aamir [Khan] they are all stars if there was communal bias, how would they have become stars."
Controversy
Rahman's remarks and subsequent clarification
Rahman had earlier spoken about a "power shift" in the Hindi film industry, saying that non-creative people now hold decision-making power. "People who are not creative have the power now to decide things, and this might have been a communal thing also, but not in my face." After facing backlash, he released a video message stressing his commitment to India's diverse cultural fabric through music and clarifying that he never intended to hurt sentiments.