Shah said he was scheduled to interact with students at a programme organised by the University’s Urdu Department on February 1. However, late on the night of January 31, he was informed that his presence was no longer required.
“I was looking forward to meeting students”
According to Shah, he was particularly excited about the event as it would have given him an opportunity to engage freely with students. The sudden decision to remove him from the programme, he said, came as a shock.
The actor also alleged that later the University claimed he himself had declined to attend the programme. Rejecting this assertion, Shah said the claim was completely false and amounted to shifting blame onto him instead of stating the truth.
Challenge over “anti-national” label
Shah wrote that it was suggested he makes statements against the country. Responding to this, he challenged critics to cite even a single statement in which he had insulted India.
He made it clear that he has criticised the policies and functioning of the ruling establishment in the past and will continue to do so, adding that remaining silent has never been an option for him.
Concerns over democracy, freedom and fear
In his article, Shah expressed deep concern about the current state of the country. He wrote that civic sense, mutual sensitivity and space for dissent are steadily shrinking.
He pointed to situations where student activists are kept in jail for long periods without trial, while those convicted of serious crimes are granted bail with ease, calling this deeply troubling.
Questions on history, education and science
Shah also raised concerns about attempts to rewrite history, alter school textbooks and even interfere with subjects like science. He questioned certain statements made by political leaders and the broader social environment prevailing in the country.
“This is not the country I grew up in”
Concluding his article, Naseeruddin Shah wrote that the India he grew up in no longer feels the same.
“Today, thought is policed, surveillance has increased, and hatred runs around the clock,” he wrote.
Drawing a parallel with George Orwell’s 1984, Shah posed a stark question: has refraining from criticising those in power now become the definition of patriotism?
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