Swara Bhasker says she does not believe in ‘bullying other people into’ having a political opinion

Swara Bhasker said that though she has strong political views, she believes in 'live and let live' and would not force someone else to have an opinion on things.

Swara Bhasker said that she does not believe that being an actor and having a political opinion are mutually exclusive. She said that as an artist and a citizen of India, she has the right to express her views about the goings-on in the country.

Swara Bhasker has strong political opinions.

However, Swara feels that actors should not be bullied into having an opinion on everything. She said that people might have different opinions but spreading hate and justifying murder is unacceptable. She added that it is alright to not want to work with someone who spreads negativity.

Asked if she ever feels the need to tone down her political voice as an actor, Swara said having an opinion and being able to express it is what differentiates human beings from animals. “I don’t understand why being an actor and having an opinion are two oppositional things. Why can’t they go together? I am an artist, a citizen of this country. I pay taxes here. What happens in this country affects my work directly,” she told Filmfare.

Swara said that she may not agree with actors who remain silent on issues but does not judge them. “I don’t believe in bullying other people into having an opinion just because I have one. I really believe in the policy of ‘live and let live’,” she said.

“I judge people for breaking the law. You can have whatever opinion but you don’t justify murder, right? Don’t spread hate. All that is not okay. I have no problem working with anybody who does not agree with me. If you have, in the past, behaved in a manner where you have used your platform in a way that will harm someone else, especially some other community, then I am not okay with that. It has never happened before but it is okay if you don’t want to work with someone because you don’t want to bring that toxicity in your life,” she added.

On Friday, Swara’s new web series, Aapkey Kamrey Mein Koi Rehta Hai, dropped online. The horror-comedy, which also features Sumeet Vyas, Amol Parashar, Naveen Kasturia and Ashish Verma, is streaming on MX Player.