Dubai: Pakistani actor Adnan Siddiqui faced criticism comments made by a TV show host. The host joked about Siddiqui's deceased former co-stars Sridevi Kapoor and Irrfan Khan. The actor apologised through his social media channels calling the whole episode a "callous act".
The host of the TV show 'Jeeway Pakistan', Aamir Liaquat, joked with Siddiqui on the show about how Siddiqui had 'saved lives' of two well-known stars by not doing certain movies.
After Siddiqui seemed to not get the joke, Liaquat's explanation took an insenitive turn when he brought up the now deceased former co-stars of the actor. Liaquat said, ”Look, you worked in Mom, Sri Devi passed away. You worked with Irrfan Khan, and now he died."
"Whoever works with you outside [Pakistani cinema] dies...", he added.
Siddiqui looked uncomfortable and replied, "This isn't a joke for me. They were both very close to me..." The host then steers the conversation away.
Irrfan Khan died on Wednesday following a battle with a neuroendocrine tumour. Sridevi Kapoor died in February, 2018. Both were celebrated and respected actors, and their deaths shocked Bollywood.
Video footage of the show later went viral. Siddiqui posted an apology on his Twitter account and said, "So I don’t know how to explain what I’m feeling right now or what to say. But this needs to go out. I was invited on the live chat show ‘Jeewey Pakistan’ yesterday when this unfortunate incident happened. The anchor Amir Liaquat Sahab joked about something extremely sensitive. Not only were they both close to me but also as a human it was wrong on so many levels. I cannot even call it ‘hitting below the belt’.
"It was an extremely callous act to joke about the deceased. This is in very bad taste, not only does it show him and me but also the entire country in bad light. I want to apologise to the families of Sridevi Sahiba and lrrfan Khan Sahab, their loved ones and fans. If you see my body language I was extremely uncomfortable with what he said but I didn’t want to stoop to that level. I regret being on the show. I’ve learnt my lesson and I promise I will not tolerate such an act in future. I was hoping this bit wouldn’t become public but unfortunately it has. I’m sorry. Thank you."
