Okay, hold your breath. Akshay Kumar has finally chosen to talk about his Canadian passport. Why, you ask? Well, some ‘trolls’ had been constantly badgering him with questions about whether he voted or not. Most of these tweets that slammed Kumar with the question inferred that he was not eligible to vote. That he had allegedly renounced his Indian citizenship for a Canadian one. Responding to the memes and the social media chatter, our ‘non-political’ Akshay Kumar tweeted a note that he had never attempted to hide or deny the fact that he held a Canadian passport. And that he works in India, and accordingly pays his taxes like all citizens.
— Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) May 3, 2019
Only recently, when Akshay Kumar was asked about whether he had voted, he chose to politely ignore the question and walk away. The TV clip has since gone viral, only further prompting the question around Kumar’s citizenship. Only a week before that, Kumar had interviewed the honourable Prime Minister of India on ‘non-political’ issues like mangoes, why he never gets angry or how he has retained his ‘sharp sense of humour’. The interview irked many because it was conducted right in the middle of elections. Many publications called it a farce of the MCC set by the Election Commission, and Kumar was further questioned about whether he would be voting in the election.
Hey @akshaykumar here you are claiming that Canada gave you an honorary citizenship. Did you lie then or you are now? pic.twitter.com/AOosYoQOSM
— Pankaj Mishra (@pankaj_mishra23) May 3, 2019
But @akshaykumar said that he is just an ‘Honorary citizen’ of Canada. An honorary Canadian citizenship doesn’t give you a passport. So, did hyperpatriot Akshay Kumar lie openly and blatantly to Indians? https://t.co/UC3gchoWJu
— Κρόνος (@libertariandesi) May 3, 2019
At least two videos have emerged on Twitter that are directly negating Akshay Kumar’s desh prem. In the above note, Kumar says that he has never tried to hide the fact that he has a Canadian passport. But a clip of a news channel shows him clarifying his ‘honourary’ status as a Canadian citizen, saying that it’s like an ‘honourary doctorate’. Thus implying that he was still an Indian citizen. But a passport implies that Kumar is a Canadian citizen, so one can’t be sure if Kumar was trying to mislead his countrymen then or now.
“Toronto is my home, after I retire from this industry I will settle in Canada” pic.twitter.com/Ypet1U0oBJ
— Tarique Anwer (@tanwer_m) May 3, 2019
Another viral clip shows Kumar proudly announcing in a public function that ‘Toronto is my home’. And it is the place he wants to settle down in, after he retires from his Bollywood career. The clip seems to be from a time when Kumar had produced a Canadian film called Breakaway. How things have changed after 7 years and nearly two elections.
It should be noted that even in Kumar’s latest statement, he doesn’t explicitly state that he’s still an Indian citizen. The thing he stresses upon is that he pays his taxes here, and that he will continue his work for different causes that make ‘India stronger and stronger’. Well, he’s not earned the moniker of a Khiladi for nothing.
