The actor posted an angry tweet on July 23 after reaching home early morning and being disturbed from sleep soon thereafter
Actor Suchitra Krishnamoorthi reached home at 4.45 am on the morning of July 23. Soon thereafter she was disturbed by “ear-shattering” azaans (calls for namaz) from two neighbouring mosques. The angry actor shot off a Tweet message protesting against what she described as “extreme imposed religiosity”.
A section of the Twitterati shot back, some mocking her, some alleging her complaint was nothing but cheap attention grabbing. Samajwadi leader Juhi Singh mocked Suchitra for thinking sleep is more important than prayers.
“Such irresponsible comments have been made in the past also. I am unable to understand what kind of people they are. I would like to know how does azaan, which otherwise purifies you on hearing, bother her. May be her sleep is more important,” SP leader Juhi Singh told ANI, on Monday.
Responding to the criticisms against her, Suchitra shot back to say that one, she had no objection to azaan during “decent hours” and two, she herself prayed but did not need someone to wake her up for that through blaring loudspeakers.
In April this year, singer Sonu Nigam had triggered a similar conroversy, describing the use of loudspeakers for azaan and sermons as “hooliganism”.
He had tweeted a message saying: “God bless everyone. I am not a Muslim and I have to be woken up by the azaan in the morning. When will this forced religiousness end in India?”
“Gundagardi hai bus (it is hooliganism),” he had added. Apologising later, Nigam had said he was trying to raise a social issue and not raking up a religious controversy.
However, when the imam of Kolkotta’s Jama Masjid declared an award of Rs. 10 lakh to anyone who shaved off Nigam’s head, the singer got himself a cleanshave before TV cameras and demanded that the award be paid to him.