New Delhi: Noted actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan is not someone who would mince words to express his viewpoints. He has always openly aired political views without fearing anyone. On Friday during an interaction in the national capital, the 63-year-old who has recently launched his political party, Makkal Needhi Maiam, blamed ‘one personality’ for igniting extremism in India. However, he stopped short of naming the person whom he thinks is responsible for the countrywide extremism.
While clarifying about his controversial remarks on ‘saffron terror’, Haasan at the India Today Conclave 2018 said this: ‘I had used the word ‘teevira’, which means extreme. We even say that someone is a teevira fan of something. Does that mean the person is a terrorising fan? No, we just mean that he is a big fan and has extreme feelings. Extremism is displaying your feelings without regard to others’ sentiments. And that is definitely happening today. For example, the Periyar statue being damaged. This extremism is being ignited by one personality.’
Even when the host asked Haasan to name the ‘personality’, he refused. The actor-politician said extremism was often just a diversionary tactic. The popular actor-politician also spoke about the reasons behind joining politics.
‘For too long, people have neglected politics, thinking there are others to do that job, and the job of citizens is only to cast their vote. I too thought like that. But now I have changed,’ he said.
‘Distress had been creeping into Tamil Nadu for almost half a century now. Mediocrity had become the standard. When mediocrity is the standard, rubbish becomes acceptable, the acceptable extraordinary, and the extraordinary becomes genius. I want to be extraordinary.’
Regarding launching his own political party, instead of joining an established organisation with an existing cadre, such as the AIADMK, which is also in need of a leader, Haasan said: ‘I am hungry and have to eat, but what is available is rotten fruit.’
OneIndia
