Never intended to hurt Hindus: Kamal Haasan

CHENNAI: Under fire from various outfits for his statement that Hindu terror does exist and none can deny it anymore, Tamil actor Kamal Haasan on Tuesday said he was against violence in the name of any religion – be it Hinduism, Christianity or Islam – and that he never intended to hurt Hindus. He also said he would handle the cases filed against him in various parts of the country for his statement “the way truth has to be handled.” Speaking to reporters after announcing the launch of a digital platform as a precursor to his political plunge, Kamal said he never used the word “terror” but just “theeveram (extreme) just, as he would describe his die-hard fan.

“I don’t start with the intention of hurting Hindus. I said ‘theeveram’ and it means extreme. When I call someone as my theevera fan, it does not mean he is a terrorizing fan and I am not bothered about how many Hindus were present in that hall or even in the country but was concerned about those back at home. I will be reduced to tears if they (family) deny me the weapon called love,” the actor said.

He was responding to a volley of questions on the recent controversy over his Hindu terror remarks. In his weekly column in Ananda Vikatan, Kamal had last week said “Hindu terror” does exist as he contended that the right-wing groups have resorted to using “muscle power” to silence their opponents by dumping their old method of engaging them in dialogue. Kamal’s controversial statement on “Hindu terror”, which he said was not a new phenomenon, came two months after he declared his colour, was “certainly not saffron” after his meeting with Kerala Chief Minister Pinnarayi Vijayan. Incidentally, today’s comments on “Hindu terror” also came in reply to a question posed to him by the Communist veteran in the same magazine on what he thinks about the efforts by Hindutva forces to denigrate the Dravidian culture.

Noting that he came from a Hindu family, Kamal said he had come out of that in search of truth. “My non religious identity, I don’t want to glorify or ridicule it. I never meant to defame Hinduism because I would never jeopardize the love from several fans and family members from Hinduism,” he said.