Nagarjuna Cancels Maldives Trip Following Naa Saami Ranga Release, Gives Shoutout To Lakshadweep

Nagarjuna’s recent outing Naa Saami Ranga was the final release of Sankranti this year. The film hit the big screen on January 14. Ahead of the film’s release, the actor was in a conversation with Oscar-award-winning MM Keeravaani where he discussed his upcoming Maldives trip, which he cancelled and planned to travel to Lakshadweep instead. 

Nagarjuna says Maldives is facing the ‘repercussions’ of their actions 

Ahead of the release of his film Naa Saami Ranga, Nagarjuna sat for a conversation with the Naatu Naatu lyricist Chandrabose and songwriter MM Keeravaani. The actor spoke about taking a break after working for a significant time and shared that he was planning to travel to Maldives with family but cancelled it after the recent controversy. Nagarjuna claimed, “I was working for 75 days for Big Boss and 'Naa Saami Ranga' without a break. Now, I have cancelled my tickets, and I am looking to going to Lakshadweep next week.” 

Explaining his stance further, the actor asserted that he has not deferred his trip out of any ‘fear’. He reiterated that the Maldives has insulted the Prime Minister of India, which should not be taken in stride by any citizen. He added, “Did not cancel it because of fear or anything. I cancelled the tickets because it is not healthy. Whatever they have said or the statements they have made were not healthy at all, and it's not right, and he is our Prime Minister. He is leading 1.5 billion people. He is the leader of 1.5 billion people and whatever they treated is not right.” Concluding his thought, Nagajrun mentioned that the nation of Maldives is reaping the ‘repercussions’ of their own actions. “Every action has a reaction”, the actor said. 

What is the India-Maldives row? 

A social media war erupted when Maldives Ministers Malsha Shareef, Mariyam Shiuna, and Abdulla Mahzoom Majid made derogatory remarks against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in now-deleted posts. Following the derogatory remarks, a diplomatic row ensued. On January 4, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared images from his visit to Lakshadweep, triggering criticism from Maldivian social media users. Maldives Ministers were suspended, and the government issued a statement rejecting the derogatory remarks. In response, Indian celebrities and citizens took to social media to express their dismay, leading to the trending hashtags #ChaloLakshadweep and #BoycottMaldives.

(With inputs from IANS)