Clean your backyard first, Sharmila tells Anbumani
In a rebuff to health minister Anbumani Ramadoss over his campaign against on-screen drinking and smoking, censor board chief Sharmila Tagore on Thursday made it clear that his views on the matter were not welcome and suggested that the minister i...
By TNN |
NEW DELHI: In a rebuff to health minister Anbumani Ramadoss over his campaign against on-screen drinking and smoking, censor board chief Sharmila Tagore on Thursday made it clear that his views on the matter were not welcome and suggested that the minister instead focus on real issues like spurious medicines.
Taking a dig at the minister who favours a ban on smoking and drinking in films and who has criticised filmstars for endorsing junk food, Ms Tagore retorted: ���First it was about smoking, then the minister spoke about chips and now alcohol. I think what is primarily important is that he should focus on real issues like fake medicines. There are a lot of drugs that are fake and it is a known fact, that is actually causing a lot of problems.���
The minister had criticised superstar Shahrukh Khan for ���promoting smoking and drinking��� on screen by playing characters like Devdas and, more recently, his performance as a drunken junior artist in the box-office hit Om Shanti Om.
The minister had regretted that the actors, by smoking or drinking on screen, were conveying a wrong message to the country���s young and old who watched their films.
However, what may have really put off Ms Tagore was his jab at her son, film actor Saif Ali Khan, for endorsing Lays chips, during the course of which he even cited Khan���s recent heart problem.
Saif Ali Khan had last year collapsed ahead of a performance at a film awards function in Mumbai and had to be rushed to the hospital. The doctors who attended to him reportedly diagnosed his condition as a mild heart attack.
Taking a dig at the minister who favours a ban on smoking and drinking in films and who has criticised filmstars for endorsing junk food, Ms Tagore retorted: ���First it was about smoking, then the minister spoke about chips and now alcohol. I think what is primarily important is that he should focus on real issues like fake medicines. There are a lot of drugs that are fake and it is a known fact, that is actually causing a lot of problems.���
The minister had criticised superstar Shahrukh Khan for ���promoting smoking and drinking��� on screen by playing characters like Devdas and, more recently, his performance as a drunken junior artist in the box-office hit Om Shanti Om.
The minister had regretted that the actors, by smoking or drinking on screen, were conveying a wrong message to the country���s young and old who watched their films.
However, what may have really put off Ms Tagore was his jab at her son, film actor Saif Ali Khan, for endorsing Lays chips, during the course of which he even cited Khan���s recent heart problem.
Saif Ali Khan had last year collapsed ahead of a performance at a film awards function in Mumbai and had to be rushed to the hospital. The doctors who attended to him reportedly diagnosed his condition as a mild heart attack.
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