Actor Prakash Raj had made a splash as the comical villain in Singham (2011), but has since been busy in Tamil and Telugu films. However, according to recent statements by the actor he seems to imply that his open and confrontational political stance has led the Hindi film industry to shy away from offering him roles.
In a recent interview to Print.in, the actor said, "There is no problem (with the film industry) in the south, but there has been no offer from the Hindi film industry since I started speaking out."
The actor has been on the offensive since the death of his close friend and journalist, Gauri Lankesh, in 2017. Since then, Prakash Raj has often taken to Twitter and media platforms to criticise the actions of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. It has not always gone down well, with the actor receiving threats and abuses for his stance.
The actor added, "Gauri’s death disturbed me a lot… She was asking questions. When she was silenced, I felt guilty. Did we leave her alone in her fight? The more I question, the more attempts to silence me, be it (by) character assassination, threat or (by) trying to stop my work… it’s the BJP."
Despite his political statements, the actor continues to be popular in films down south. The actor was part of Priyadarshan's latest direct to Netflix film, Sila Samayangalil.
While Prakash Raj has his directorial debut, the trilingual Tadkaa, on hold, another Hindi project which is on the roster is the Sunny Deol Bobby Deol-starrer, Bhaiyyaji Superhitt. The film is set to be released on 14 September.