Indian society becoming regressive, freedom of expression shrinking: Javed Akhtar

Akhtar, who has in the past faced the wrath of fundamentalists and trolls for his opinions on the social media, regretted that Indian society was becoming “more regressive”.

Javed Akhtar has warned that the room for creativity or freedom of expression, which has been the ethos of Indian democracy, is shrinking and called for taking lessons from the “pathetic condition” of some neighbouring countries where such extremism was prevalent.

Javed Akhtar at Juhu during the 40 years contemplating film Sholay in on Saturday January 28, 2017 in Mumbai, India. (Photo by Satish Bate / Hindustan Times)

Akhtar, who has in the past faced the wrath of fundamentalists and trolls for his opinions on the social media, regretted that Indian society was becoming “more regressive”.

“It is very unfortunate but true that as a society we are becoming more regressive. The elbow room for creativity, literature, cinema or for any kind of point of view is shrinking and that is not advisable at all. I think we should be careful about it. Because, look at the condition of regressive societies, where such extremism is an accepted norm. Do we want to emulate them? Just look across, we do not have to go very far,” Akhtar, married to actor and theatre artist Shabana Azmi, told IANS.