Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Criticises Bollywood for Promoting Bad Habits and Attacking Indian Culture
A few years ago, spiritual leader and founder of the Art of Living Foundation, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, strongly criticised the Hindi film industry, also known as Bollywood. He said that the industry is promoting immorality, drugs, alcohol, and is damaging the country’s culture and religious values.
Even though many Bollywood celebrities have supported or joined his organisation’s events, Sri Sri did not hold back. He called Bollywood a place filled with unethical behaviour and said that actors are influencing the youth in a wrong direction.
Religion Is Shown in a Bad Light
In one of his speeches in 2013, while addressing a large gathering, he said,
“In Bollywood films, a person wearing a tilak is usually shown as a villain, and anyone with a small ponytail is always the bad guy. They try to show religious people in a poor way. This is done so that young people move away from religion.”
He explained that when young people lose interest in religion, they become more open to harmful habits like drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes. “The only thing that can protect someone from these things is being religious,” he said. Also read: BBC Faces Backlash Over Sidhu Moose Wala Documentary.
Bollywood Actors Live Unethical Lives
Sri Sri also criticised actors for charging very high fees while spreading messages that attack Indian traditions like ashrams and temples.
“They say ashrams are bad and temples are places of money-laundering, but they are the ones actually doing such things,” he said. “An actor only needs to sneeze in an ad for Vicks, and they earn crores of rupees for it.”
According to him, many Bollywood stars pretend to talk about ethics, but their own personal lives are full of unethical and immoral behaviour. “They don’t want ethics or religion to grow in society. They are like politicians who create fake enemies just to fight with them,” he added.
Drugs and Alcohol Linked to Bollywood
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar further claimed that the drug problem in states like Punjab is connected to Bollywood’s influence.
“The drugs and alcohol lobby is connected with Bollywood. They want to attract youth towards these bad habits. This is how Punjab got trapped in such a problem,” he said.
He also said it is sad that Punjab, which was once known for being strong and full of life, is now suffering because of such issues.
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