On Saturday, Kolkata saw a fierce war of the words between popular public figures at The Telegraph National Debate, on whether ‘tolerance is the new intolerance’. On Sunday morning, what took the internet by storm was Anupam Kher’s blistering speech roasting the Congress and the ‘intolerance brigade’.
Barkha Dutt’s response to Anupam Kher, who she said was a “hard act to follow”, was no less of a speech. Barkha’s main point was this – let’s step back from the histrionics and politics, shed the hypocrisy and get back to conversations. “Have we as Indians forgotten the art of conversation?" she asks.
Stating that she was not there to talk about the BJP or the Congress, and taking a dig at her prime-time rival Arnab Goswami, Barkha says that our narratives have become reductionist and are dumbing us down.
“We are proud Indians, and we don’t need anyone to certify us,” she says.
Barkha’s self-characterization is interesting too. She says she is a capitalist, a free-thinker and loves the Army. She disagrees with Kanhaiya on many issues, but that does not stop her from saying that the government messed up in JNU.
She also points out how Jayalalithaa, Prakash Badal and Mufti Mohammad Sayeed – two of who are allies of BJP – have openly supported the release of convicted terrorists or hailed them.
Watch the full video here.