Hyderabad: The world of entertainment is no stranger to controversies, and there has been a major uproar involving Shah Rukh Khan and Ram Charan. We take a closer look at what happened – and how Ram Charan responded with class.
The Incident
SRK’s recent remark during Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s pre-wedding festivity has triggered a wave of controversy. In a video clip that has taken social media by storm, the renowned actor can be heard good-naturedly calling Ram Charan “Bhend idly vada” in gibberish Telugu. Unfortunately, this seemingly light-hearted banter didn’t sit well with everyone.
Backlash and Outrage
Netizens were quick to express their anger, saying that SRK’s comment was disrespectful and possibly even racist. Using the word “idli” in a joking manner made people sit up and take notice: it also led them into debating whether cultural sensitivity should be shown when talking about South Indian actors.
The make-up artist for Ram Charan, Zeba Hassan Zaidi, left part-way through – clearly unhappy with what Shah Rukh had said till then!
A friend of Ram Charan, also a star himself, who was not in a forgiving mood, said, “Just because you are Shah Rukh Khan you feel you can get away with anything? Tell him to call out a Bengali star with gibberish Bengali and a maach thrown in, or call out a Gujarati star as dhokla? Would Khan like to be called out as ‘tandoori chicken’? You are a superstar, man. Act mature. Act responsible.”
Ram Charan’s Gracious Response
Amid the uproar, Ram Charan maintained his composure. According to sources close to the Telugu superstar, “He knows Shah Rukh Khan didn’t mean any offense. He was just fooling around. But he crossed the limit and he should apologise. Ram Charan is likely to come out with a statement very shortly requesting his fans to let it go. Aisa hota hai. We South Indians have always been ridiculed in Hindi films. But one would expect more sensible conduct from a man of Khan’s stature.”
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