Prakash Raj says ‘half of Bollywood is sold and the other half is scared' to speak up against the govt: ‘History won't forget those who were silent'

Indian Express

05-05-2025

Actor Prakash Raj has never shied away from sharing his political opinions and has often voiced his criticism against the policies of the ruling party. In a recent interaction, the Duet actor spoke candidly about his colleagues in the Hindi film industry who avoid speaking on political matters in public. He admitted that while many are afraid, 'half of them are sold' and refuse to speak up against the government.
Speaking to The Lallantop on the subject, Prakash stressed that while the government may use its power to suppress dissent, filmmakers must be willing to create thought-provoking cinema and fight for its release. He said, 'Any powerful government will stop discussions. Secondly, it should be within the artists also. They should also have the consciousness of the kind of films that they make, they would be willing to fight to release the film. That resilience is needed.'
Not mincing his words when it came to his peers, he added,, 'Half of them are sold, my own colleagues, and half of them are afraid because they don't have the strength. I have a very close friend who, told me, 'Prakash aap mein dum hai, aap bol sete hai, mein nahi bol pata (You have the strength, you can speak up, I can't).' I told him that I understand but I can't excuse him because in future, when history would be written, it will forgive those who committed crimes but not those who were silent. Everybody is responsible.'
It's not as if Prakash has remained unaffected despite his outspoken political stance. In the same interaction, he shared that he is getting less work in the Hindi film industry due to his vocal beliefs. He said, 'They are just worried that if they work with us in a film, they won't get what they expect. So, this is part and parcel of it. This environment is like that. It makes me stronger to say that this is not right, so we will have to fight, we will have to raise our voice.' When asked whether actors lose opportunities for speaking up, he responded, 'It's not that you won't get work, you do and you will, but not as much.'
On the professional front, Prakash was last seen in Suriya's recent release Retro. He also has films like Vijay's Jana Nayagan and Pawan Kalyan 's They Call Him OG in the pipeline.