Fans, BJP leader call for boycott of Deepika Padukone for showing up at JNU protest

• Deepika's visit came at a time when most of Bollywood's A-listers have chosen to stay silent on the rising protests across India.
• Her visit to Jawaharlal Nehru University drew admiration from many, while a stream of hate messages have also been circulating on Twitter.

Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone visited Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi yesterday in support of the ongoing protest and to show her solidarity with the students, who were subjected to violence on Sunday.

The actor was in town for promotions of her upcoming film ‘Chhapaak’, when she arrived at the university where a public meeting was being held.

The said meeting had been organised by the JNU students and the teachers’ association against the attack on students by masked men and women armed with iron rods on Sunday which resulted in more than twenty people getting injured and hospitalised.

Deepika’s visit to JNU has drew admiration from many, while on the other hand, a stream of hate messages have also been circulating on Twitter, along with a call for boycotting her movie releasing this Friday.

Indian political party BJP has also called to boycott Deepika upcoming film. BJP leader Tejinder Singh Bagga, a national spokesman of the BJP called for a boycott of her films 'for her support to #TukdeTukdeGang and Afzal Gang'.

Following her visit, several hashtags, both positive and negative, such as #IStandWithDeepika, #BoycottDeepikaPadukone and #BoycottChhapaak started trending on Twitter.

On the JNU violence, Deepika said in an interview, “I am very angry at what is happening but it is worse that no action is being taken”.

Several Bollywood celebrities including Anurag Kashyap, Taapsee Pannu, Vishal Bhardwaj, Ali Fazal, Richa Chadha and Zoya Akhtar among others participated in a protest held at the Gateway of India in Mumbai Tuesday night.

Actress Sonakshi Sinha has also praised Deepika for supporting the JNU protest.

No matter which political party you support,do u support violence?Don't visuals of bleeding students and teachers shake you up?We can't sit on the fence any longer.Kudos to @deepikapadukone for showing up,& all those who spoke for speaking up.This is not the time to stay quiet.

— Sonakshi Sinha (@sonakshisinha) January 8, 2020

The actress' visit came at a time when most of Bollywood's A-listers including the Khans have chosen to stay silent on the rising anger and protests across India, opposing the Citizenship Amendment Bill and acts of violence on university campuses.