Amol Palekar says it was a good thing that he was interrupted during his speech at NGMA

Amol Palekar said that he was not against a particular party but the ideology that threatens the pluralism of India.

Looking back at an incident that fuelled discussions over right to expression, veteran actor-director Amol Palekar says it was good that he was interrupted at an event at National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) earlier this year. The actor, who turned 75 on Sunday, said his comments weren’t about any particular political party as the establishment “will always try to curb opposition”.

Amol Palekar said that it was his responsibility as an artiste to raise his voice against the “autocratic and undemocratic modus operandi” of the government. (Pratham Gokhale/HT Photo)

“Establishment never likes dissent; it will always try to curb opposition. However, the attack on our right to express has taken an ugly mode in the last five-six years. I was trying to highlight certain wrong governmental decisions scarring the artistic freedom that we all enjoy. In hindsight, it was good that I was interrupted several times because of which the issue was discussed even internationally,” he told PTI in an interview.

In February, the GolMaal actor was repeatedly interrupted during a speech at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) in Mumbai before being completely cut off when he criticised the government. Palekar had criticised the Ministry of Culture over its alleged decision to scrap the advisory committees of local artists at the gallery’s Mumbai and Bengaluru centres.

The theatre and film actor recently made a comeback on the stage with Kusur - The Mistake, which he said will be his last play, a “showstopper”.

“I have no intention to keep on doing theatre. Kusur is my show stopper. At my age, it is physically very demanding. Besides, I don’t know if I will be able to fulfil the audience’s expectations,” he said.

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