‘Sometimes people have to be told they can’t take liberty’: Javed Akhtar on responding to trolls

Speaking on the sidelines of the ‘IP and Music: Feel the beat of IP’ conference organised by FICCI here on Tuesday, veteran screenwriter-poet Javed Akhtar said trolls should know they can also be subjected to the same treatment when the need arises.

Whether it’s supporting Indian cricketer Mohammed Shami during the recent ‘roza’ row, getting back at trolls who targeted him for praising Virat Kohli or condemning the Pahalgam terror attack in strong words, the lyricist is known for openly voicing his opinions on X.

Asked whether his family asks him to steer clear of social media trolls, Akhtar told PTI: “Yes, absolutely. Even my friends say ‘Let it be. Why do you want to get into it? You are above all these things’. Forgive me for my immodesty, I mostly feel above these (trolls) but sometimes you have to come down and tell them that, ‘No, you can’t take this liberty, and if you will, I’ll pay you back in the same coins.”

The 80-year-old writer, who also serves as the chairperson of the Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS), said the copyright body needs government support so that artists receive their fair share of public performance royalty.

“If there are a few lakh people who are not paying us public performance royalty, we can’t have a few lakh cases in courts — it is not possible. It is only the government which can put pressure by making some kind of a rule or a sub-rule to make it mandatory to pay," he said.

“Whenever I have contacted any political party or ministry, they have been extremely sympathetic about the cause. They have respect for Indian artists, they have often gone out of the way to help us. I have no such problems. What we have to do now is to go again (to the authorities) and tell them what is wrong. You have made a fantastic law, but it is not working on the ground,” he said.

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