'Disgraceful' - Monty Panesar calls for boycotting ‘Laal Singh Chaddha’ for its portrayal of Sikhs

Former England spinner Monty Panesar has strongly condemned the Bollywood movie ‘Laal Singh Chaddha’, starring Aamir Khan, for its portrayal of the lead character, who is a Sikh. Panesar called the movie “disrespectful” and “disgraceful” to the Indian Armed Forces, Indian Army and Sikhs.

The movie is a remake of the 1994 Hollywood movie ‘Forrest Gump’, which depicts the life of a man with a low IQ, making it all the way into the US Army and into the American history books. Panesar explained that the Hollywood movie is explicable because the US Army was recruiting low-IQ men to meet requirements for the Vietnam War. However, he did not agree with the plot of the Bollywood movie due to its inaccurate portrayal of a Sikh.

‘#BoycottLalSinghChadda’ – Panesar

Panesar took it to Twitter to express what he thought about the movie, Laal Singh Chaddha: “Forrest Gump fits in the US Army because the US was recruiting low IQ men to meet requirements for the Vietnam War.  This movie is total disgrace to India Armed Forces Indian Army and Sikhs !!Disrespectful. Disgraceful. #BoycottLalSinghChadda.”

The movie has been directed by Advait Chandan, written by Atul Kulkarni and produced by Aamir Khan Productions and Viacom18 Studios, and released on August 11, Thursday. Some of the other actors to feature in the movie are Kareena Kapoor, Akkineni Naga Chaitanya, Mona Singh, and Manav Vij.

The movie was filmed in over 100 locations in India after the principal photography began in October 2019. The filming was delayed several times due to the Covid-19 pandemic after it was initially announced that the release date would be during 2020-2022. 

Meanwhile, Panesar played for England between March 2006 and December 2013. He made his international debut against India in Nagpur. He is of Punjabi descent, and his father Paramjit Singh is a real estate developer. His family migrated from the Indian state of Punjab to Luton in England in 1979. Panesar went on to represent England in 50 Test matches, 26 ODIs and one T20I, picking up 193 international wickets.