Kannada actor Upendra is hogging headlines after he made a controversial statement against Dalits during his recent Facebook Live session on Saturday. Following his remark, an FIR has been registered against him. The actor-turned-politician was live on Facebook and Instagram on the anniversary of his political party Prajaakeeya.
During the Facebook Live session, Upendra said, "Change can happen only with innocent hearts. I wish for innocent hearts to join us and speak up. Their suggestions will benefit us. They won't speak carelessly or insult someone. There are some who have a lot of time on their hands. They comment on whatever comes to their mind. Can't do anything about them. If there's a town, it will have Dalits. Similarly, these kinds of people also exist. Let's ignore them. Let's not read those comments. Patriotism is when you love people.”
Soon after the backlash, the actor deleted the video and upon receiving a police complaint, he issued an apology. He wrote, "I used a proverb in Facebook and Instagram live broadcast today. As soon as I find it hurting many people's feelings, I will delete that live video from my social media. And sorry for his word."
Take a look:
Born as Upendra Rao, the actor is known for his films like Preethse, Super Star, Kutumba, Hollywood, Super, Kalpana, Godfather, I Love You, Kabzaa, and others. In October 2017, he turned a politician and joined the Karnataka PRagnyavanta Janata Paksha. Later, he formed another party Uttama Prajaakeeya Party. He is married to actor and former Miss Kolkata Priyanka Trivedi. The duo starred together in the Telugu film Raa and H2O.
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