Veteran actor Mukesh Khanna was at the receiving end of severe criticism after he stated in his review of the film Kalki 2898 AD that it was made for "intelligent people in the West" and that people of Odisha and Bihar would not understand it. However, he has now clarified his stance and stated that he did not mean to demean the people of Odisha and Bihar.
"I came to know through social media that people of Odisha and Bihar believe that I have insulted their intellect while reviewing the movie Kalki. This is a huge misunderstanding which I want to clarify," he wrote.
He went on to explain, "I had pointed out two minus points of Kalki, one of them being that it has distorted the facts of Mahabharata, and another was that the first half of the film was boring and confusing that a common man might not understand."
"I presented the rural people of Odisha and Bihar as examples while explaining that the Hollywood-style first half might bounce over the heads of many people, which is the film's weakness. My staff members, who watched the film with me, did not understand the first half, and some of them even fell asleep. Usme se teen Bihar ke the," he said.
"I say this because I believe it's the film's weakness, but nowhere did I mock the intellect of the people. I have visited Odisha and Bihar for campaigns and functions, I have visited the Puri temple as well. Why would I speak ill of them? This matter was about the film and I was speaking ill about the film, not about the people of Bihar or Odisha," he concluded.
In his review of Kalki 2898 AD, Khanna had also slammed the makers for taking "creative liberties" while drawing stories and references from the Mahabharata.
Meanwhile, Kalki 2898 AD has emerged to be a blockbuster as it has minted close to Rs 1000 crore at the global box office. The film, which was made on a budget of Rs 600 crore, stars Prabhas, Deepika Padukone and Amitabh Bachchan in lead roles.
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