Entrepreneur and former Shark Tank India judge, Ashneer Grover subtly criticised Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh over a controversial post amid the ongoing India and Maldives tensions. The actor had earlier shared a social media post expressing support for Lakshadweep tourism, but the catch was, that the accompanying picture was of the Maldives and not Lakshadweep.
Ashneer Grover joined the chorus of those calling out the Bollywood star for the oversight. Without directly naming him, the entrepreneur made a veiled hit at the actor, contributing to the ongoing debate surrounding the appropriateness of using a Maldives image to promote Lakshadweep tourism during a sensitive diplomatic time.
Retweeting a post of comedian Vir Das, Mr Grover wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “There is some movie star, previously inactive on Twitter, who is now copy-pasting the same message to visit Indian islands - without knowing where Lakshadweep is and in parallel hiding previous Maldives story on Instagram.”
Meanwhile, the Internet swiftly intervened, identifying the "some movie star" as Ranveer Singh.
One user commented under the post, “Ranveer Singh is that some movie Star.”
Another said, “Ranveer Singh you mean? You can say it openly.”
Others said it is not entirely the actor's fault because some politicians made the same mistake.
“What to expect from Bollywood stars when our Minister itself doing same,” a comment read.
The incident came amid escalating tensions between India and the Maldives, sparked by derogatory remarks made by certain ministers from the island nation directed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Meanwhile, the Maldives government on Sunday declared the suspension of those holding government positions who were responsible for the offensive social media posts. Although the official statement refrained from explicitly naming the ministers involved, local media reports identified the suspended officials as Mariyam Shiuna, Malsha Sharyf, and Mahzoom Majid.
