Forgive and forget, says Akshay Kumar on Rajesh Khanna controversy

Superstar Akshay Kumar said the controversy over Naseeruddin Shah's comments on his father-in-law, the late Rajesh Khanna, had ended as Shah had "gracefully apologized" and the matter should be forgotten.

Asked about Shah's comment, Kumar said: "I am in this industry for the last 25 years, just tell me if I have ever spoken anything about other actors. Some wise person has said mind your own business and I feel I should do my own work... who am I to comment on anyone?

"Everybody has their own way of talking and everyone can speak their voice. Now it's closed. Naseer saheb has gracefully apologized and I would appreciate if we all forget about this."

In a recent interview, Shah had said that nothing had changed in mainstream Hindi cinema, also known as Bollywood, and it remained the way it was 50 years ago.

"The photography and editing are better but the subjects are as puerile as they were in the 1970s," he had remarked. "In fact, it was the 1970s when mediocrity came in Hindi films. That's when the actor called Rajesh Khanna joined the industry. For all his success, I think Mr Khanna was a very limited actor. In fact, he was a poor actor. Intellectually, he wasn't the most alert person I have ever met. His taste ruled the industry."

Shah had also said that it was during the 1970s that the industry became less content driven. "The quality of scripts, acting, music and lyrics deteriorated. Colour came in. You could make a heroine wear a purple dress and hero a red shirt, go to Kashmir and make a movie. You didn't need a story. This trend continued and I certainly think Mr Khanna had something to do with it because he was god in those days."