Veteran actor Asha Parekh slammed the makers of the 2022 hit The Kashmir Files – the film is backed and directed by Vivek Agnihotri – for not donating a part of their earnings to help Hindus living ‘without water and electricity’ in Jammu and Kashmir. During an interview with CNBC Awaaz, Asha was asked if she had watched ‘controversial’ films such as The Kashmir Files and The Kerala Story (2023), both of which did well at the box office. Responding to this, the actor asked what had people gained from such films.
When told that people liked these films, Asha Parekh said in response, “Maine picturein dekhi nahi hai toh main kaise controversy pe baat karun? Agar logo ko pasand hai toh Dekho chahiye aise filming (I haven’t seen these films, so I can’t comment on the controversies surrounding them. But if people like watching these films, then they should watch)
Speaking about The Kashmir Files and its huge box office collection, Asha Parekh further said, “Logo ne dekhi The Kashmire Files. Main thoda sa controversial statement karna chahti hoon (Yes, people watched The Kashmir Files. I will say something controversial now). The film’s producer made ₹400 crore.
Chaliye ₹400 crore mein se ₹200 crore kamaye hai, toh ₹50 crore bhi toh de sakte the na (How much money did the makers give for the welfare of the Hindus living in Jammu without access to water and electricity. Suppose the producers earned ₹200 crore out of the film’s ₹400 crore collection, they could have donated ₹50 crore to help Kashmiri Hindus, right)?”
