An online feud has ignited between filmmaker Hansal Mehta and actor Anupam Kher over the portrayal of former PM Dr Manmohan Singh in the 2019 political drama The Accidental Prime Minister.
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It all started when journalist Vir Sanghvi took to X (formerly Twitter) after the passing of the ex-PM on December 26, and criticised the film for being “the worst Hindi movies ever made”, claiming that the film was used to “tarnish the name of a good man”.
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) December 27, 2024
Re-tweeting the same, Mehta – who served as the creative director in the film – wrote, “+100”, sharing his support with the statement.
Slamming Mehta for the remark, Kher, who portrayed Singh in the film, called The Buckingham Murders director a hypocrite, highlighting that he, too, played a role in the creation of the movie. Calling the comment “so messed up and full of double standards”, Kher claims that the filmmaker is trying to “earn some brownies from certain section of people”.
Of course I own my mistakes Mr Kher. And I can admit that I made a mistake. Can’t I sir? I did my job as professionally as I was allowed to. Can you deny that? But it doesn’t mean I have to keep defending the film or that it makes me lose objectivity about my error of judgement.… https://t.co/UIgc4Pdvww
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) December 27, 2024
And by the way @anupampkher sir… you can say all you want. Call me names if you wish. Apologies if I’ve inadvertently hurt you. Sending love to you. Whenever you wish we will speak and clear the air. I will not give space to trolls to distort this further and have a field day at… https://t.co/UIgc4PcXGY
— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) December 27, 2024
Now, responding to the accusation, Mehta admits that he made a mistake taking on the project, and can no longer keep “defending the film”. In a second thread of tweets, he continued, “And by the way @anupamkher sir... you can say all you want. Call me names if you wish. Apologies if I’ve inadvertently hurt you. Sending love to you. Whenever you wish we will speak and clear the air.”
About The Accidental Prime Minister
Directed by Vijay Gutte, the film explores the 10-year tenure of Manmohan Singh as the Prime Minister of India. The political drama – starring Kher, Akshaye Khanna, Suzanne Bernert, Arjun Mathur, and Aahana Kumra – faced heavy criticism for the portrayal of the former PM. Made on a budget of Rs 18 crores, the film grossed Rs 31 crores worldwide.
