Mumbai:
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Big weight off my shoulder: Amitabh in his Lexus at 11.30 pm at the airport. pic/shadab khan |
At 2.41 am Amitabh Bachchan wrote a post on his blog - just three hours after he walked out of Mumbai airport, flying in from London. It's a 1,729-word post detailing the whys and wherefores of the Jaya Bachchan 'hum UP ke hain, Hindi mein bolenge' controversy.
The tone of the blog, not surprisingly, is placatory, beseeching and of course, apologetic. In fact, he signs of saying, "humbly and in servility, Amitabh Bachchan."
The actor says he was completely in the dark about the MNS-Sena-Jaya Bachchan controversy, as he was abroad, but reading up about it on the net, was suitably shocked and immediately texted Jaya. While he hasn't written the exact SMS, his post says, "She must seek regret and offer an apology. Everything that we possess today is what came to us from this great state and city.
"We never have and never can look at Maharashtra with disrespect. If inadvertently this is what has been construed, then we apologize and are sorry and seek forgiveness for any sentiments that have been hurt."
He added that he remained awake the whole night, worrying and was relieved when he saw the faxed newspaper reports the next morning, Tuesday, that Jaya had "on her own spoken to the media ⦠and regretted the hurt caused and apologized. I feel grateful and happy."
Bachchan then goes on and on about how he and his family have helped Maharashtrians - "I contributed voluntarily to his (a critically ill Maharashtrian poet's) expenses to the tune of Rs 11 lakh⦠When the Marathi film 'Swaas' was selected for the Oscars and the producers did not have money to go to Los Angeles to promote the film I contributed to their expenses by giving them Rs 11 lakh. Jaya is an integral part of an organization called 'Yuvak Biradiri' an NGO that does charitable work with and for the youth of the state of Maharashtra."
And on and on... However, the MNS is in no mood to forgive and forget or for that matter accept Jaya's apology. Its activists have blackened a cement advertisement hoarding endorsed by Bachchan in Juhu and Vakola early this morning. "We want her (Jaya) to make a public apology. Until then, we will continue to boycott the family," said an activist.
Nitin Sardesai, general secretary, MNS said, "We haven't seen the blog, so our decision on our agitation remains."
