Hansal Mehta’s clash with Anupam Kher after the death of former Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has been widely circulated on the internet for quite some time now. And now, in an exclusive interview with Times Now, the filmmaker has shared his final opinion on the whole matter.
It all started when journalist Veer Sanghvi tweeted, “If you want to remember the lies told about Manmohan Singh then you should watch again.” The Accidental Prime MinisterNot only is it one of the worst Hindi films ever made, but it is an example of how the media was used to tarnish the name of a good man.”
Hansal responded by writing, “+100”, which angered Anupam Kher, who played the lead role in the biopic.
On Sunday night, the filmmaker shared the link of his interview on his For those who choose to troll without any purpose.” Or with one – get well soon, my work is done for now.”
See the tweet here:
Here is a very detailed response to Mr. @anupampikher And for those who still believe in reading. To those who choose to troll with or without any purpose – get well soon. For now my work is finished here.
Hansal Mehta responds to Anupam Kher’s sharp comments on The Accidental Prime…
– Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) 29 December 2024
Mentioning that he respects the veteran actor, Hansal said during the interview, “He is a senior, and his film summary is one of the reasons why I became a filmmaker; it changed something within me. They have every right to criticize me.”
He added, “However, given the considerable amount of time he has spent with me, I would at least expect him to refrain from making baseless insinuations and name-calling.”
“Instead of respecting the dignified stance I had adopted at that time, they brought up old tweets, called me names, hinted at some hidden agenda and told me I was on the set for 35 days. Was I there on a picnic? “What exactly is he trying to say?” Aligarh The director commented.
Explaining why he decided to work on the film, Hansal said, “I made a professional commitment to work on the film because the producer supported my film Shahid at a time when I was struggling. He was willing to do whatever he could.” To assist them, I fulfilled that commitment to the best of my ability and within the limited capacity given to me by the director and creative team of the film.”
But even though he worked diligently on the film, he still attaches great importance to his personal opinions.
He said, “Although I stand by my commitment, I also stand by my opinion about what the ultimate outcome of the film was.”
“Perhaps I could have expressed this opinion earlier, but it was a chapter I had left behind – until I heard the news of Shri Manmohan Singh’s demise. It is unfortunate that my words focused on him. What should have been a serious reflection was that I faced abusive trolling because of my error in judgment,” he clarified.
Earlier, Anupam Kher had tweeted, “@virsanghvi is not a hypocrite in this thread. He has the freedom to not like a film.”
Calling out Hansal Mehta, the tweet further read, “But @mehtahansal was the #CreativeDirector of #TheAccidentalPrimeMinister. Who was present during the entire shooting of the film in England! Was giving his creative inputs and may have also taken fees for it. So His 100% statement on #VirSanghvi’s comment is very messed up and full of double standards!”
“Not that I agree with Mr. Sanghvi, but we are all capable of doing bad or indifferent work. But we should own it. Not like #HansalMehta, who is trying to make some money from a certain section of people. Come on Hansal!! I still have all the videos and pictures from the shoot together!” The post ended with a strong condemnation of the filmmaker’s “double standards”.
To this Hansal Mehta hit back and said, “Of course I admit my mistakes Mr. Kher. And I can admit that I have made a mistake. Can’t I do that sir? I did my job as professionally as I could.” “I had permission. Can you deny?” He? But that doesn’t mean I have to keep defending the film or it will lose objectivity regarding my error of judgment.”
“Regarding the ridiculous points and hypocrisy, I would like to respectfully say that you are evaluating people on the same scale on which you evaluate yourself,” the post concluded.
If we talk about the film The Accidental Prime Minister It was directed by Vijay Ratnakar Gutte, starring Anupam Khet as Dr. Manmohan Singh and Hansal Mehta as Naveen Patnaik.
Apart from them, the film also stars Akshaye Khanna as Sanjay Baru, Suzanne Bernert as Sonia Gandhi, Arjun Mathur as Rahul Gandhi and Aahana Kumra as Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
