Mandira apologises for wearing flag-themed saree

MUMBAI: Trouble is becoming Mandira Bedi’s middle name. On Saturday she was caught up in a nine-yard controversy.

When Bedi came on air to kick off the final between Sri Lanka and Australia, she was in a saree — designed by Puneet Nanda of designer label Satya Paul — that had flags of all countries in the World Cup.

The Indian flag appeared in the folds of her saree below her knee, near her foot. TV channels caught it first. Soon everyone had caught on.

For Bedi, the showers that hit Kensington Oval after the toss came as a breather. By the time the showers had done their two bits, Bedi was back on air with a different saree. But the damage was already done. Puneet Nanda had to apologise. “I didn’t think our flag would end up near Bedi’s foot. I am sorry,” he told DNA.

Mandira also tendered an apology to fellow Indians who were upset about her wearing the flag-themed saree. The actor noted that she had saved the saree in question for the final day of the tournament as it had flags of the 16 participating nations.

The controversy comes at a time when Akal Takht, the highest body of Sikh religious affairs, accepted the apology of Bedi pertaining to the use of a Sikh religious symbol on her body as a tattoo.

Mandira had sent a signed apology to Akal Takht head Joginder Singh Vedanti expressing regret over hurting Sikh sentiments by displaying an 'Ek Omkar' tattoo in Gurmukhi on her bare back during a fashion show in Mumbai recently.