Veteran Bengali actor Prosenjit, who will be next seen in the Bollywood film, Maalik, issued an official statement on Thursday, clarifying his stance after he was accused online of insulting the Bengali language due to an incident during the film's promotions. Prosenjit stated that not even his worst dreams could he think of insulting his mother tongue.
It all began after during the trailer launch event of Maalik in Mumbai, a senior journalist asked a question to Prosenjit in Bengali. The actor was then heard asking her, "Why do you have to speak in Bengali?", given the fact that most of the journalists in the room did not understand the language and the event was for a Hindi film. But his Bengali fans felt that the actor tried to demean the language and lashed out at him on social media.
Prosenjit issues official statement
Putting an end to the chatter, Prosenjit finally cleared the air on Thursday, with a long note on Instagram. The note, written in Bengali, roughly translates to: "I have been working primarily in Bengali for 42 years. Over the past few years, I have had the opportunity to work on a few national-level projects. One such occasion was the trailer launch of a Hindi film, held on July 1 at PVR Juhu, Mumbai."
It further read, "During the press conference, everyone on the dais — the film’s director, artists, and others — were primarily speaking in English from the beginning. A Bengali journalist, whom I’ve known for a long time and hold in great affection, asked me a question in Bengali. But at that moment, I felt that if I responded in Bengali, many people present might not understand the meaning properly, since most of them there did not understand Bengali. So, somewhat out of compulsion, I asked her why she was asking the question in Bengali."
Prosenjit went on to say, "Since only that one sentence has been circulated on social media, perhaps many have taken offense by interpreting it literally. That hurts me too -- and continues to hurt. Because I never imagined that my words would be taken this way. Perhaps I failed to convey my intent clearly by using a few English words. And I believe that is where the misunderstanding began."
"I cannot even imagine -- not even in my worst dreams -- disrespecting my mother tongue. Bengali is the language of my soul, the language of my love. But the judgment of Bengali people has always been paramount to me, and it always will be, till my last breath," he explained.
"Lastly, I must say this — I understand that my words have hurt many of you, and for that, I am sorry. I have shared with you the context and my thoughts at that time," he concluded.
Prosenjit in Maalik
Meanwhile, Prosenjit is all set to play the role of a no-nonsense cop in Maalik, which stars Rajkummar Rao in the titular role. The film will also see Manushi Chhillar playing Rajkummar's love interest.
During the trailer launch of Maalik, Prosenjit had shared that while he has played several cop characters in his career, the one in Maalik would be very different. "My character in Maalik is not just for the national audience but for my Bengali audience as well. They'll see me doing something very different with this film. I took the character as a challenge, and I really enjoyed playing it," he had said.
Maalik will release in theatres on July 11, Friday.
