Bollywood vs South debate erupts in RS, Jaya Bachchan gives a blunt counter

India crafted history at the 95th Academy Awards held on 12 March. India won in two categories- Best Song was awarded to Naatu Naatu and Best Documentary Short film was awarded to Guneet Monga and Kartiki Gonsalves’s The Elephant Whisperers.

The ruckus that ensued in the Rajya Sabha started when the leaders of the regional political parties brought forth the North India versus South India debate and Jaya Bachchan a veteran of Indian cinema put them down with her remarks. 

Rajya Sabha MPs congratulated the makers of “Naatu Naatu”, the breakout hit from the action film “RRR”, and the documentary “The Elephant Whisperers” on Tuesday for winning two Oscars in one night.

Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar mentioned “Naatu Naatu” for winning the Academy Award for best original song and “The Elephant Whisperers” for winning the Oscar for best documentary short film.

“The 95th Academy Awards was a moment of glory for us,” Dhankhar said. “The wins for ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ and ‘RRR’ mark a new recognition of the full spectrum of cinema that India produces.”

Union Minister Piyush Goyal pointed out that the win by ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ was also special because it was driven by two women, making it a proud moment for India.

However, the debate started when MDMK leader Vaiko said, “I want to remind all of you what AR Rahman (Music composer, director) who is from Tamil Nadu, did for India’. 

Vaiko was joined by AIADMK’s M Thambidurai who said, “The documentary ‘The Elephant Whispers‘ was shot in Ooty and I am proud of it.”

Following this, when Jaya Bachchan was giving her speech in the Rajya Sabha she mentioned, “It doesn’t matter where they are from North, East, South or West – they are Indians. I stand here with pride and respect for our film fraternity, who have represented this country many times and won many awards.”

She added that Satyajit Ray won an Oscar in 1992.

“RRR writer (KV Vijayendra Prasad) is not just a screenwriter, he is also a storyteller and a member of the film fraternity. That is a great honour. ” Bachchan added. It is to be noted that scriptwriter of RRR, V Vijayendra Prasad, is a Rajya Sabha MP. 

Jaya Bachchan, an MP of the Samajwadi Party, said she was happy that the House was discussing the most important ambassadors of the country, the film fraternity.

“The market of cinema is here. It is not in America,” she said. “This is just the beginning and I would like to congratulate the Indian population, for whom people in the West are recognising great works by Indian filmmakers”.