On 23 April, Sunday, film star Dia Mirza went to Rajkot to perform at a police function. The actress was excited to be among her fans in Rajkot. However, later that same evening her enthusiasm turned into a nightmare. At a press conference on Sunday evening, Dia made a statement supporting Aamir Khan and his stance on the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA). This is what led to a backlash from a political party in Rajkot. Dia Mirza had to face the party and its supporters’ ire for voicing her personal opinion. This has left Dia extremely upset and fearful.
Says the visibly upset Dia, “It all began when I went to Rajkot to attend a musical night organized by the Rajkot police to raise funds for a community hall. I flew to Rajkot on Sunday morning and was asked to attend a press conference in the evening. So I complied, till then everything was going fine.” Dia further adds, “At the press conference, one reporter asked me if I agreed with what Aamir Khan had said on the Narmada Dam issue. So I replied it is unfair that people are upset with him, as he didn’t mean to hurt anybody. All that he has said is to rehabilitate those surrounding people who are being affected by the dam. Whats wrong if he has expressed his views?” Unfortunately, immediately after the conference Dia was surrounded not by cheering fans, but by angry mobs that shouted and chanted slogans against her.
The Rajkot police, fearing that things could escalate out of control if Dia stayed on in Rajkot, advised her to leave the city immediately. A frightful Dia was escorted amidst tight police security in the middle of the night. Dia was put on an international connecting flight and was relieved to land at the Bombay airport at 5.30 a.m. Earlier the actress was scheduled to catch a flight at 8.30 a.m. from Rajkot. Dia Mirza is quite traumatized by this incident, she says, “I am not an activist, I am simply in concurrence with someone’s views. Don’t political parties have more important things to do than react to someone’s viewpoint? Why are they creating such a commotion over my viewpoint?”
Earlier on when Aamir Khan voiced his support for the displaced inhabitants of the Narmada project, political parties burnt posters and effigies of the actor where his film Rang De Basanti was running in Gujarat. The actor also had to be provided with tight security. Actors and actresses are merely voicing their opinion and they should be supported by one and all in times like these.
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