Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah recently found himself at the center of social media outrage after voicing support for Diljit Dosanjh’s casting alongside Pakistani actor Hania Aamir in Sardaar Ji 3. In the face of heavy backlash, Shah quietly took down his Facebook post defending Diljit, replacing it with a cryptic quote that many believe is a subtle response to the controversy.
Naseeruddin deletes post, shares cryptic quote
On Monday, Naseeruddin had taken to Facebook to publicly back Diljit. However, the post was later deleted—seemingly in response to the flood of critical comments. Instead, he shared a thought-provoking quote by 18th-century German philosopher Georg Christoph Lichtenberg:
“It is almost impossible to carry the torch of truth through a crowd without singeing somebody’s beard.”
The quote sparked a fresh round of debate in the comments, with users split between applauding Shah’s stand and criticizing his support for a cross-border collaboration during heightened Indo-Pak tensions.
What Naseeruddin originally said
In his deleted post, Shah had written passionately in favour of Diljit, who has been the target of calls for boycotts and bans after the trailer of Sardaar Ji 3 was released.
“I STAND FIRMLY WITH DILJIT. The dirty tricks deptt of the Jumla Party has been awaiting a chance to attack him. They think they’ve got it at last. He was not responsible for the casting of the film, the director was.”
He went on to add, “But no one knows who the director is, whereas Diljit is known the world over. He agreed to the cast because his mind is not poisoned… My response to those who will say ‘Go to Pakistan’ is: Go to Kailasa.”
The backlash against Diljit
Diljit has come under fire after Sardaar Ji 3 cast Pakistani star Hania Aamir in a lead role. Several right-wing organisations including the All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA) and Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) have called for a ban on Diljit’s future projects. This comes in the wake of escalating tensions between India and Pakistan following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack and India’s retaliatory Operation Sindoor on May 7.
Despite the controversy, Sardaar Ji 3 released overseas on June 27, though it hasn’t made it to Indian screens. While singer Mika Singh has urged Diljit to issue an apology, the actor-singer has maintained silence.