On June 12, veteran lyricist Javed Akhtar made an appearance in a Mumbai court regarding a defamation case he filed against Kangana. Akhtar alleged that certain statements made by actress Kangana Ranaut in an interview with a news channel after the tragic passing of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June 2020 were inaccurate.
For the uninitiated, Kangana stated in an interview to a news channel in 2020, following the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, that Javed Akhtar asked her to apologise to co-star Hrithik Roshan following a public spat over a remark about their alleged romance. She also stated that the lyricist told her that she would commit suicide if she didn't apologise. "Once Javed Akhtar called me to his house and told me Rakesh Roshan (father of Hrithik Roshan) and his family are very big people. If you don't apologise to them, you will have nowhere to go. They will put you in jail, and eventually, the only path would be that of destruction… you will commit suicide. These were his words. He shouted and yelled at me. I was shaking in his house," the 'Queen' actress said.
On Monday, Akhtar appeared before the Andheri metropolitan magistrate court in suburban Mumbai for cross-examination by the defence lawyer in the defamation case.
During cross-examination, Kangana's lawyer Rizwan Siddiquee questioned Akhtar, "Is it true that you have not disclosed the true fact of the meeting with her because whatever Kangana said in the interview is true."
He dismissed all the statements of the actress and said, "Whatever Kangana said in the interview is a lie and nothing but a lie."
In response to a question about the meeting at his home, Akhtar stated that Kangana had come to his home to try to work out a solution with her co-star. He was asked if the actress and her sister came to his house "obediently".
The 76-year-old lyricist said, "You expect obedience from Kangana, it is not called obedience, but possibility for something...some kind of a solution. Physical reality is they came to my house, but obedience is a notion only in mind."
Akhtar said that the actress was aware of the agenda of the meeting. "I had told her about the agenda of the meeting on call. Didn't call her to discuss the weather, political situation or America election in 2016," he stated.
In response to another question, he stated that while Kangana was unwilling to listen to him, claiming that she was unhappy and afterwards left the meeting is incorrect.
(WITH PTI INPUTS)
