The veteran screenwriter was asked about the ongoing cancel and boycott culture in Bollywood. Replying to the same, he said, “It is a passing phase. It is very evident that it doesn’t work. If the film is good and is appreciated by the audience, it will work. If it is not good and not appreciated by the audience, it won’t work. I don’t think this kind of announcement of cancel culture and boycott works at all.”
He also recalled his first memory of attending the Filmfare Awards. “My fondest memory of Filmfare is when I first attended it. I was 14-15 years old in 1959-60. Bina Rai won the Best Actress award for ‘Ghoonghat’, Dilip Kumar for ‘Kohinoor’ and Bimal Roy for ‘Parakh’. I had attended the event on the guest card of Bharat Bhushan,” Akhtar stated.
Shabana, who accompanied him on the red carpet, added, “My first Filmfare Award was very precious. Although I had already won the National Award, Filmfare was special because you are being judged by your peers which made it very exciting.”
On the work front, Shabana will next be seen in Karan Johar’s ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani’ which stars Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh in the lead roles. It also features Dharmendra and Jaya Bachchan in key roles. The film is slated to hit the theatres in February next year.
