Right wing blocking my Ad deals: Prakash Raj

BENGALURU: Multi-lingual actor Prakash Rai, better known as Prakash Raj, has joined Bollywood heros Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan in the list of celebrities who have been threatened with or removed from branding contracts following pressure from right wing forces.

Rai, after an interaction with the media in Bengaluru, told ET: “The brand that I represent as an ambassador is facing a lot of pressure from these right wing elements to remove me. The company has said they are standing by me, but this is the situation we are all faced with, because we are asking questions and not keeping quiet.”

“Hasn’t this been happening from quite some time? Wasn’t Shah Rukh Khan sidelined? Wasn’t Aamir Khan removed as brand ambassador? My commercials are being stopped too,” he stated.

Rai backed senior actor Kamal Haasan’s stand that fear politics is being practised. “You have passed a cow slaughter act, yes, but you kill someone just or suspicion? If a boy and a girl are sitting by a lake, you just stone them and get them married? If you ask these questions, you are trolled. But trolling makes you stronger, so I do not block trolls,” he said.

The multi-lingual actor-director-producer, however, said he was not in favour of film actors getting into politics. This is in the wake of Kamal Haasan, Kannada actor Upendra and Telugu actor Pawan Kalyan’s entry into the political arena and the rumours of Tamil actor Rajnikanth also following them.

“It is this country’s tragedy. I am telling all the fans, don’t just vote for the people you clap for. I am not speaking about the previous generation of actor-politicians, but about the current one. Find out if they know what your problems are and ask them what their solutions are, before you vote for them.