PM Modi is a better actor than I am: South Indian actor Prakash Raj questions PM's 'silence' on Gauri Lankesh murder

Veteran actor Prakash Raj, who has won accolades for his roles in both mainstream Bollywood movies, and movies in the South Indian film industry, on Monday lashed out a Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his silence in the murder of veteran journalist Gauri Lankesh.

Prakash Raj, who claims to have known Gauri for the past 35 years, said that her father was a mentor to him. Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, the five-time National Award-winning actor said, ““I am worried about the PM’s silence. Is he trying to endorse cruelty espoused by some of his followers,” he said as per a Deccan Chronicle report.

Speaking after inaugurating the 11th state meet of the Left-oriented Democratic Youth Federation of India here, he said, “Those who killed Gauri may or may not be traced but that apart, there is a huge crowd out there enjoying and celebrating her murder on social media. We all know who they are, what their ideology is. Some of those celebrating this ghastly episode are being followed by none other than Mr Modi himself. This is what worries me, where is our country is headed to?” he questioned, adding that the PM’s silence makes him a “better actor than me”.

The actor also hit out at Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. “We don't know whether he's a Chief Minister or the Poojari of a temple. You know, I have 5 national awards. I think I should give them to him,” he said, according to a report by The News Minute.

Prakash Raj has won 5 National Awards for films across industries in his long career. These are Best Supporting Actor for Iruvar (1997, Tamil), Special Jury Award for Anthapuram (1999,Telugu), Special Jury Award for various movies (2003, multiple languages), Best Actor for Kanchivaram (2007, Tamil), and Best Film for Puttakkana Highway (2010, Kannada).