VIDEO: Om Puri Makes Some Insensitive Comments About The Indian Army

In a heated debate conducted by IBN 7, Om Puri invited hate and harsh criticism from Bollywood and Twitterati after hurling brutal comments towards the Indian army. The major focus of the debate was the ongoing issue of the ban on Pakistani talent, owing to the growing tension between India and Pakistan. The actor was asked about his opinion on the issue, and his response hurt the sentiments of the other panelists. Reportedly, Puri has said in the past that Pakistani artists work in India with a valid visa and that it was incorrect to boycott them. He was also reported to have said that if Pakistani talent is completely done away with, Indian producers who have cast them in their films will suffer major losses. While trying to explain his stance during the live debate, he made some insensitive comments about the Indian army.

Watch the snippet from the video here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03M__i9Tbqo

When asked about his stance on the pressing issue, he expressed his pride about India attacking Pakistan, saying that we have proved that we can fight back. He went on to say that we haven’t attacked for the longest time because we don’t believe that its the solution to all problems. The actor continued to compare the current India-Pakistan scenario with the Israel-Palestine condition.

He said during the debate:

Aap chahte hai ki Hindustan-Pakistan Palestine aur Israel ban jaye, aur sadiyo tak ladta rahe? Hamare Hindustan mein baaees crore musalman rehte hai, unke rishtedaar udhar rehte hai, Pakistan ke rishtedaar idhar rehte hai. Main mazdoor aadmi hoon, main kaam karoonga Pakistani actors ke saath. Aap apni sarkaar pe zor kyun nahi daalte, ke unka visa cancel karo? Arrey baaees crore musalmaan bhare pade hai yahaan, bhadkaao mat unko. Aap sab itni ghatiya filmein banake Pakistanio pe thookte rahe ho, besharmo! Humne usko force kiya tha ke fauj mein jao? Kisne bola hathyaar uthaane ko? Mera bhi baap fauj mein tha, humein toh unpe fakr hai. I don’t give a damn about Salman Khan or some other Khan. Main bas yeh bolna chahta hoon- aap yahaan 10-15 Hindustani tayaar kar sakte hai jo apne shareer pe bomb bandhke Pakistan mein jaake kuch udake aaye. Dhanyavad.

This loosely translates to:

Do you want India-Pakistan to turn into Palestine and Israel and wage war for years? 22 crore Muslims reside in India – some of their relatives stay in Pakistan and some Pakistanis’ relatives stay here. I will work with Pakistani actors to earn my daily bread. Why don’t you ask the government to cancel their visas? There are around 22 crore Muslims in India, don’t provoke them. Did we ask them (soldiers) to join the army? My father was also in the army and I am proud of our soldiers. I don’t give a damn about Salman Khan or some other Khan. I’ll end with this – please prepare 10-15 Indians as suicide bombers and send them to Pakistan. Thank you.

With this, the actor, furious, stormed out of the interview. Puri’s statement evoked hate and criticism from MNS spokesperson, Vageesh Saraswat. In fact, Twitterati has expressed their anger against his statement as well.

Here’s what they tweeted:

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