Bollywood's Naseeruddin Shah apologises over Sindhi language row, Pakistani actor gives the thumbs up

Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah has issued an apology after his statement on the Sindhi language sparked controversy. The veteran actor had said in an interview that the language was longer spoken in Pakistan, drawing flak on social media.

In a Facebook post shared on June 10, Naseeruddin Shah admitted that he was ill-informed and apologised to the “entire Sindhi-speaking population of Pakistan”.

“Ok Ok, I apologise to the entire Sindhi-speaking population of Pakistan who I seem to have deeply offended by my mistaken opinion. I admit I was ill-informed but is it necessary to crucify me for that? “Let him who is free from…” as Jesus said,” the post read.

Naseeruddin Shah further said that he was “quite enjoying being called ‘ignorant’" after being “mistaken for an intelligent person” for many years. “It’s quite a change,” he added.

Earlier, the 72-year-old actor also addressed another controversy surrounding his remarks regarding the Marathi language. He wrote, “Two completely unnecessary controversies seem to have erupted. over things, I’ve said recently. One regarding my mis-statement about the Sindhi language in Pakistan. I was in error there. The second over what I’m supposed to have said about the relationship between Marathi and Farsi. My exact words were “many Marathi words are of Farsi origin”.

Naseeruddin Shah said that his intention was not to “run down the Marathi language” but to highlight the diversity that “enriches the cultures”. He underlined that the Urdu language is also a “mix of Hindi, Farsi, Turkish, and Arabic”, adding that even English has borrowed words “from all European languages not to mention Hindustani”. The actor said that he believes it is “true of every language spoken on Earth”.

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