South stars Ram Charan's wife Upasana and actress-turned-politician Khushbu Sundar have accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi on being prejudiced against the southern film industry. The South celebs are disappointed that the south cinema industry was neglected during the recent 'Change Within Meet'.
Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with members of the film industry in Delhi. Several of Bollywood's top stars, including Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Kangana Ranaut, Jacqueline Fernandez, Imtiaz Ali, Ekta Kapoor, Anurag Basu and Boney Kapoor were present at the event.
The focus on inviting the film industry was to create films and television shows that popularise Mahatma Gandhi and Gandhism, to mark the 150th birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation.
Opening up about the reason behind getting upset, Upasana said: "I absolutely respect Mr. Narendra Modi and I believe that his leadership and innovative campaigns have the power to bring the revolutionary change that India needs.
"The #ChangeWithin campaign was most recently hosted with leading film personalities and cultural icons and was hands down impressive. I am, however, upset that icons from the South of India who have brought so many awards and accolades to our country on a global platform have not been included in this campaign," she said.
Upasana feels the "southern film industry has created masterpieces and has pushed the boundaries of Indian cinema".
"At this juncture a bit of recognition and appreciation by our Prime Minister would have really been extremely motivational. I express my feelings in pain and I hope its taken in a positive spirit. The Southern film industry is working day in and day out to raise the bar and deliver sensational films that make India proud. We all need a little acknowledgment and encouragement to motivate us to work harder and make our country proud," she added.
Khushbu tweeted: "South Indian cinema represents our country globally. The best of talent comes from south India. The biggest superstars come from south India. India's best actors belong to south India. Best technicians are South Indian. So why was South industry not invited?"
