Veteran screenwriter, lyricist, and poet Javed Akhtar attended the ‘Faiz’ festival in Lahore during which he fired potshots at Pakistan in regard to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
In a video posted by GNN YouTube channel, he could be heard saying, “Haqeeqat yeh hai ki hum dono ek dusre ko ilzaam na dein toh usse baat nahi hogi, aham baat yeh hai ki jo garam hai fiza, woh kam honi chahiye.Hum toh Bambaiye log hain. Hamne dekha wahan kaise hamla hua tha. Wo log Norway se toh nahi aaye the naa Egypt se aaye the, wo log abhi bhi aapke mulk me ghum rahe hain. Toh ye shikayat agar Hindustani ke dil mein ho toh aapko bura nahi manna chahiye…”
Various artists also criticised him on his words. Recently Pakistani Actress and model Zara Tareen called him an “ungracious guest”.
Zara Tareen wrote in her Instagram story: “ALL THAT BEING SAID, I THINK IT’S UNFAIR TO ATTACK ANYONE WHO INVITED HIM INTO THEIR HOMES WITH RESPECT. THAT’S PRECISELY THE DIFFERENCE IN HOSPITALITY AND RESPECT AND IT’S WHAT WE’RE POINTING AT WE ALWAYS SO AS PAKISTANIS.
#JAVEDAKHTAR SAHAB WAS AN UNGRACIOUS GUEST BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN WHO WELCOMED HIM SHOULD BE AT THE RECEIVING END OF ANY FLACK. AS FAR AS THE CLAPPERS AT HIS ACTUAL COMMENTS. THEY ARE FAIR GAME. ”
Netizens applauded him for calling out terrorism stemming out of Pakistan on Pakistani soil. A Twitter user wrote, “direct and unambiguous, well done @Javedakhtarjadu,” while another Twitter user wrote, “Take a bow @Javedakhtarjadu Sahab.”
Meanwhile, many Pakistani criticized him on Twitter for his biased and one-sided opinion regarding terrorism.
JAVED AKHTAR IN LAHORE, COMPLAINING IN FRONT OF A CROWD WHO STILL KEPT ON CHEERING FOR HIM DESPITE SUCH ALLEGATIONS. THIS COULD ONLY HAPPEN IN PAKISTAN WHERE PEOPLE’S HEARTS ARE AS BIG AS ANYTHING.
IMAGINE A PAKISTANI IN INDIA AND DOING THE SAME THERE!PIC.TWITTER.COM/IMBNRYLX2H
— FARID KHAN (@_FARIDKHAN) FEBRUARY 21, 2023
JAVED AKHTAR KNOWN TO SUBCONTINENT AS A LITERARY FIGURE, ACCUSED PAKISTAN OF HARBORING TERRORISTS AT FAIZ FESTIVAL.
BUT, FORGOT THAT KULBHUSHAN WASN’T FROM NORWAY & WASN’T PROMOTING PEACE IN PAK. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER IF HE TALKED ABOUT POETRY/LITERATURE INSTEAD OF POLITICS. PIC.TWITTER.COM/EGVUMDY6LG— KHURRAM ZUBAIR (@KHURRAM__Z) FEBRUARY 21, 2023
FOR JAVED AKHTAR, PAIT-ROTISM IS REAL.
SHAME ON THE PAKISTANI IDIOTS CHEERING HIM, ZERO SELF-RESPECT. ALL THESE PLATFORMS GIVING SPACE TO PEOPLE LIKE JA NEED TO INTROSPECT. A PAKISTANI FAMILY VISITING MUMBAI’S HAJI ALI DARGAH SLEPT ON ROAD AS NO HOTEL WAS WILLING TO LODGE THEM. HTTPS://T.CO/B9TKKGREV6— سمیرا (@SUMAIRAJAJJA) FEBRUARY 21, 2023
Post attending the Faiz Festival, Javed Akhtar was also hosted by singer-actor Ali Zafar and his wife Ayesha Fazli at their residence in Lahore. Many Pakistani celebrities and the couple’s close friends were invited for the evening. Javed Akhtar even jammed with Ali Zafar and, by the looks of it, had quite a fun evening!
Coming back to the Faiz Festival, the festival is organized almost every year in Lahore.
