'The last few days have broken my heart': From Alia Bhatt to Salman Khan, every Bollywood star backing the student protests

Dubai: The protests, organised under the banner of the Cockroach Janta Party, or CJP, began over repeated leaks of the NEET medical entrance exam and have grown into a broader movement demanding education reforms and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Since police used lathi charges and tear gas against marchers on 20 July, Bollywood's response has snowballed daily, so treat this as a live snapshot.

Shabana Azmi, who marched alongside Prakash Raj, addressed the media directly at the site. "All of us who are here have come for a peaceful protest, to exercise the right granted to us by our country's constitution," she said. "Mahatma Gandhi taught us how to conduct a peaceful protest, and we have come here on that very foundation." When asked why more celebrities hadn't shown up, she pushed back sharply: "You are only worried about the fact that Bollywood celebrities are not present at the march. You don't worry about the absence of industrialists, all the businessmen."

Huma Qureshi and her brother Saqib Saleem visited Jantar Mantar in the early hours of Thursday. Huma said watching peaceful protesters allegedly met with brute force had left her deeply saddened. Amol Parashar attended the Chalo Sansad march quietly, without telling anyone beforehand, later writing that he stood among students "as nothing but a fellow citizen."

Preity Zinta wrote directly to activist Sonam Wangchuk on X: "I hope our govt starts a meaningful dialogue with Sonam Wangchuk and the student bodies so his health does not deteriorate any further! Please end your fast Sonam. Your health is as important as this fight." She followed up a day later urging that the movement not be "hijacked" by outside interests.

Aamir Khan, responding to renewed claims that his 3 Idiots character was based on Wangchuk, called the comparison "a misconception" but added: "The work Mr Sonam is doing is truly commendable. He doesn't have to be based on a character of 3 Idiots for us to respect him." He said he was "very concerned" for Wangchuk's health and hoped he'd end his fast.

Alia Bhatt wrote: "The last few days have broken my heart and then mended it, again and again, with hope. Behind every student standing their ground is a dream, a family's hope, a journey of countless sacrifices." Salman Khan shared a childhood photo of himself, writing: "It was such a peaceful movement, feel so sad that it had to take a violent turn. My heart goes out to the students and their families who were hurt."

Sonakshi Sinha posted images of injured protesters with the caption: "20th July, bohot logon ki haddiyaan tooti aur ek poore desh ka dil toota. Yaad rakhna," roughly translating to many people's bones were broken and an entire nation's heart broke that day, remember that.

Naseeruddin Shah, visibly emotional in a video message, said his heart felt heavy and that he was boiling with anger watching the cruelty shown toward the students. Diljit Dosanjh said students shouldn't have been treated the way they were, and referencing the backlash he faced during the farmers' protests, said he expected to be called "anti-national" again for speaking up. Riteish and Genelia Deshmukh issued a joint statement saying young voices deserved to be heard "loud, clear, and without fear," calling students the heartbeat of democracy. Soha Ali Khan wrote that "the future belongs to the young," wishing every young person the freedom to question and the space to protest peacefully.

Actress Revathy Asha drew a sharper historical comparison, writing that police "unleashing violence… on orders given by their seniors" reminded her of British colonial-era violence during India's freedom struggle. Rohit Saraf called the day "gut-wrenching" but said he hoped it would be remembered for the students' courage rather than the violence.

Pooja Bhatt, Ratna Pathak Shah, Aditi Rao Hydari, Nehal Chudasama, Bhumi Pednekar, Dia Mirza, Sonam Bajwa, Sonu Sood, Vishal Dadlani, Javed Akhtar, Rajkummar Rao and Anupam Kher have all voiced support too, though exact wording wasn't consistently available across sources, most centred on urging dialogue, empathy and accountability. Anurag Kashyap posted what's been described as a cryptic message questioning the police response.

Rupali Ganguly took a notably different line, writing: "Those who attack police cannot be called students." Devoleena Bhattacharjee questioned the legitimacy of the movement itself, writing skeptically about what she characterised as unrelated political causes being folded into the protest. Dulquer Salmaan called the violence "gut-wrenching" while also raising a separate concern in the same post.

Shah Rukh Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn had not issued public statements as of the most recent reporting, though given how fast this list keeps shifting, that could change quickly.