Bollywood filmmaker strongly responds to Nagarjuna’s fan-pushing incident

Jun 25, 2024, 18:31 IST

The controversy over Akkineni Nagarjuna’s recent video at Mumbai airport, in which his bodyguard pushes a specially-abled man away, is refusing to die down. When it was brought to his notice, the Telugu actor apologised on social media.

While Nagarjuna was seen walking inside the airport with his guard, an airport’s store staff member approached the actor for possibly an autograph or a selfie, but the actor’s security guard quickly pushed him away making the staff member stumble and fall. The video quickly went viral on social media and the incident created outrage over insensitive treatment towards the specially-abled fan.

Several netizens stressed on the need for sensitising the celebrities’ security guards on controlling the crowd. Reacting to the incident, Bollywood director Hansal Mehta and his son Jai Mehta expressed their disappointment.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Jai Mehta shared the Mumbai airport video and revealed that his brother Pallava, who has Down syndrome, wanted to desperately meet his favourite Tollywood star, but his repeated requests were turned down by the actor. He added that Pallava also likes Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan.

“I’d like to point out (I could be wrong. But I don’t think I am) that the gentleman asking for the ‘stars’ attention seems to be specially abled. Do they actually think a staff member/ employee at an airport who must be witnessing celebrities walk in and out of that very same arrivals gate at least 100 times a day would just barge into their personal space and nudge them for a look? The answer is NO! That man is clearly handicapped. Please correct me if I’m wrong. I highly doubt I am. In fact I have a feeling I sat on a chair outside this very outlet last week, waiting for a friend to pick me up from the airport and noticed this specially abled person,” Jai Mehta wrote in his post on X.

I’d like to point out (I could be wrong. But I don’t think I am) that the gentleman asking for the ‘stars’ attention seems to be specially abled. Do they actually think a staff member/ employee at an airport who must be witnessing celebrities walk in and out of that very same… https://t.co/Lbig2Zo5NX

— Jai Mehta (@JaiHMehta) June 24, 2024

Hansal Mehta reshared the tweet of his son Jai and stated that he made repeated attempts to fulfill the wish of his specially-abled son to meet his matinee idol, but the actor’s team did not respond to him. The Hindi director did not take any name but said the 'massive star' ignored his requests.

True story. So my son Pallava is a fan of this massive star. I’d requested through his brother, his close friends at various times that meeting the star would mean the world to him. And it would be my gift to my boy. When his eyes were operated the first person he recognised in… https://t.co/7WQYqn1pg3

— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) June 24, 2024