New Delhi: The A. R. Rahman’s recent comments about not getting work in Bollywood have drawn a strong reaction from the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP).

VHP national spokesperson Vinod Bansal on Saturday said that if Rahman wanted to get work again, he should “ghar wapsi”. His comments came after Rahman suggested that he may have lost work in the Hindi film industry over the past eight years, possibly due to communal reasons.

Reacting to this, Bansal alleged that Rahman had come to be identified with a particular group. He also claimed that Rahman appeared to be following the line of former Vice President Hamid Ansari, alleging that Ansari had enjoyed benefits and constitutional positions for ten years but later made statements that, according to him, insulted India.

Continuing his criticism, Bansal said that Rahman was once admired by Indians, including Hindus, but instead of reflecting on why he was not getting work, he was making remarks against the system and bringing disrepute to the film industry. He further claimed that Rahman was once a Hindu and questioned why he converted to Islam, adding that “ghar wapsi” could help him get work again. Such statements, he said, may suit politicians but not artists.

Rahman had made the remarks during an interview to the BBC Asian Network. In the interview, he said that for several years he had felt like an outsider in Bollywood and that he had not received work for the past eight years. Speaking about possible reasons, he said it could be communalism, though he added that it was not something directly in front of him.

Rahman also said he was not chasing work and that everything was fine. He added that he now had more time to spend with his family and believed that work should come to him based on honesty and merit, and that he would get what was meant for him.

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New Delhi: Kanimozhi Karunanidhi has written to the Lok Sabha Speaker seeking a separate seating arrangement for Members of Parliament belonging to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) following the end of the party’s alliance with the Indian National Congress.

In a letter dated May 7 addressed to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Kanimozhi said the changed political situation made it inappropriate for DMK MPs to continue sitting alongside Congress members in the House.

She requested the Speaker to make “suitable changes” in the seating arrangement of the DMK Parliamentary Party and allot separate seating for its MPs.

“In view of the changed political circumstances and as our alliance with the Indian National Congress has come to an end, it may not be appropriate for our Members to continue occupying the present seating arrangement alongside them in the House,” the letter stated.

Kanimozhi further said separate seating would help DMK members effectively discharge their responsibilities in the Lok Sabha.