Zoya Akhtar strongly reacted to the nepotism debate and asserted, "Who are you to tell me what to do with my money? It’s my money!"
Director Zoya Akhtar defended the casting of Shah Rukh Khan's daughter Suhana Khan, late Sridevi's daughter Khushi Kapoor, and Amitabh Bachchan's grandson Agastya Nanda for her latest film The Archies. Ever since the project was announced, the movie was widely debated for promoting nepotism.
In an interview with The Juggernaut, when Zoya Akhtar was asked about the nepotism debate, she said, "I think the debate is about haves and have-nots. It is about privilege, access, and social capital. I completely understand having anger or frustration at the fact that you do not have the access some people get so easily. That is a conversation to be had. Everyone needs to have the same kind of education, job opportunities, et al. But when you turn around and say Suhana Khan shouldn’t be in my film, it’s banal because it’s not going to change your life whether she’s in my film or not. You have to talk about what is going to change your life.”
Zoya also took the example of her father, Javed Akhtar and asserted, "My dad came from nowhere and made a life for himself. I was born and bred in the industry, and I have every right to follow whatever I want to do. As part of his network and what he made, I know those people. What am I going to do, disown my dad because I want to be a filmmaker? Are you saying I can’t choose my profession? It makes no sense."
Zoya further asserted, "The actual problem is something else, and this is just like beating a dead horse… it’s not going to do anything. If every kid born into the film industry never worked in film, it’s still not going to change your life… Nepotism is when I take public money or someone else’s money and favour my friends and family. Nepotism cannot be when I take my own money! Who are you to tell me what to do with my money? It’s my money! If tomorrow I want to spend my money on my niece, it’s my problem! At the end of the day, if a director or an actor gets another job, it is solely on the audience. They decide if they want to see them or not." The Archies is currently streaming on Netflix.
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 "Zoya Akhtar-The Archies")
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