Zoya Akhtar Would Have Returned National Award if She Had One

Mumbai: Filmmaker Zoya Akhtar said that if she had a national award to her credit, she would have returned it given the current atmosphere in the country.

"If I had the national award, I would have returned it. It is a peaceful way of saying things, expressing things. I support them," Zoya said on the sidelines of MAMI Film Festival in Mumbai on October 5.

Actress Kalki Koechlin said it was a brave act for artists.

"It is an important statement that people are making about the situation. It is a brave act for artists to do," she said.

When asked about filmmakers returning the national awards in protest against the 'growing intolerance in the country', superstar Salman Khan said, "Sad phase is going on. I am here for MAMI festival and I would not like to get into things which would turn other way or be interpreted in another way." (Also Read: Shah Rukh Khan's Comment on 'Intolerance' Leaves Salman in a Fix)

Next were actors Riteish Deshmukh and Jackie Shroff, and filmmaker Sudhir Mishra who expressed their views on the matter.

"We are in a democratic country like India and if one is upset with anything, one can go and say what they don't like. Every person has the opportunity to believe and say what they want," Riteish said.

Jackie said, "We live in a democratic country and everyone has the right to express things. Everyone has the freedom of expression and speech. People have their own way of expressing things."

A string of filmmakers including Anand Patwardhan and Kundan Shah, who directed Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro have returned their awards over "growing intolerance".