Veteran lyricist and screenwriter Javed Akhtar recently got into a verbal spat with a person on social media after he was accused of fat-shaming Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma.
It all started when Javed Akhtar posted an appreciation note for Virat Kohli on X (formerly Twitter). He praised Virat for his performance in the Champions Trophy semi-final match against Australia.
Javed Akhtar wrote, "Once again Virat has proved that he is the strongest pillar of today's Indian cricket's edifice. Hats off!!." Reacting to his post, an X user said, "If Virat is the strongest pillar, then who is Rohit Sharma? The heaviest pillar? Shame on you, Javed saab, for fat-shaming the Indian captain.”
The comment did not sit well with Javed Akhtar, who slammed the troll for the false accusation. He wrote, "Shut up, you cockroach. I have great respect for Rohit Sharma and all the great Indian cricketers of Test history. What kind of a neech and pathetic lair you are that you are claiming that I have ever said a word against dignity of a great player like Rohit. Kabhi socho tum itnay ghatia aur ganday aadmi kyon ho. (Ever wonder why you are such a pathetic and bad person.)”
Another user said, “Are you ready to prove your nationalism again (laughing with tears emojis)?”
To this, the lyricist responded by saying, “I am a cricket lover and pigmies like you can not stop me from showing my joy when my team wins or any of our players gives a great performance. As far as nationalism is concerned, why would I prove it to people like you since you and your past generations have nothing to do with it. You don't understand even the meanings of this word.”
Known for his work in Hindi cinema, Javed Akhtar is credited with films like Sholay, Silsila, Seeta Aur Geeta, Deewar and Don.