Film star Akshay Kumar this morning tweeted a "thank you" to veteran colleague Anupam Kher, who, with his experience in handling political controversies, offered words of comfort and advice. "Thank you and hugs," posted the actor, who has lately made headlines of the non-filmy kind.
"Dear @akshaykumar! Have been reading about you explaining to certain people about your loyalty to our country. Stop it! Their real profession is to make people like you and me feel defensive for talking in favour of India. You are a doer. You don't need to explain to anybody," Anupam Kher had tweeted earlier, along with an applause emoji and the national flag.
Akshay Kumar's response was this: "Dearest @AnupamPKher ji, duly noted, also thank you for this and thank you for being more of a friend than a colleague. Hugs."
Akshay Kumar, whose "non-political interview" with Prime Minister Narendra Modi became a talking point in the national election campaign, has faced much criticism and trolling in recent weeks.
First, social media was afire with a debate on his Canadian citizenship, which surfaced in news reports because of his brusque response to a journalist asking him why he didn't vote: "Chaliye beta".
Now the actor has been dragged into the political sparring over PM Modi's allegations that former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi enjoyed a "family holiday" on navy warship INS Viraat.
Congress leader Divya Spandana has posted photos of Akshay Kumar on board the presidential yacht INS Sumitra in a 2016 event. PM Modi "took a Canadian citizen @akshaykumar on-board INS Sumitra," she said, in the post tagging the prime minister and the actor.
Earlier this year, Anupam Kher was smack in the middle of a political row over his film "The Accidental Prime Minister", in which he played former prime minister Manmohan Singh. The Congress alleged that the film was a hit job on their leadership, specifically the Gandhi family.
Anupam Kher has been a more active participant in politics, however. He has been campaigning for his wife Kirron Kher, a BJP candidate in Chandigarh.
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