Sonakshi Sinha has come out sternly against Mukesh Khanna for blaming her dad, Shatrughan Sinha, for being unable to answer a question regarding the Ramayana on Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) 11 in 2019. In a recent interview by Siddharth Kannan, Khanna had said, “Sonakshi ke paas Ramayana padhne ka bahut samay nahi mila kyunki uski maa Shatrughan Sinha ko bolti thi,” after she couldn’t answer which Hanuman brought the Sanjeevani booti for.
Sonakshi, who is clearly upset by Khanna’s repeated remarks, took to her Instagram Stories to address the issue. “Dear Sir, Mukesh Khanna ji. I recently read a statement you made saying that it’s my father’s fault I did not answer a question about the Ramayana correctly on a show I attended many, many years back,” Sonakshi began. She added that there were two ladies who were sitting in the hot seat that day. Both did not know the answer, but Khanna went ahead to isolate her.
Counter reaction by Sonakshi to the criticism from Khanna, Sonakshi said she “blanked out” during the KBC episode that resulted in her inability to recall the answer. “It’s a natural reaction of any human being forget something under pressure,” Sonakshi said. Yes, I may have blanked out that day, a human tendency,” she wrote. She also reminded Khanna of the values of forgiveness and letting go, citing examples from the Ramayana itself, where Lord Ram forgave figures like Manthara, Kaikeyi, and even Ravana. “If Lord Ram can forgive, surely you can let go of this extremely small thing in comparison,” she added.
Sonakshi also took a jab at Khanna for his “distasteful” comments regarding her upbringing, warning him not to speak about the values instilled in her by her father. “The next time you decide to say anything about the values my father has instilled in me. please remember it’s because of those values that I have only said what I said, very respectfully,” she concluded.
The controversy started when Khanna, speaking with Siddharth Kannan, mentioned that the younger generation needed guidance from his character Shaktimaan. He referred to the Ramayana question incident, where he indirectly blamed Sonakshi’s parents for her lack of knowledge. He asked if he was referring to her. “Luv Kush is the name of their bungalow. People got angry, ‘She doesn’t know.’ I said it’s not Sonakshi’s fault; it’s her father’s fault. Why did you not tell your kids? Why did you let them be so modern?”
Sonakshi reminds people of letting go of past incidents and focusing on the values of respect and understanding. She has firmly asked Mukesh Khanna to stop using the incident for publicity at her and her family’s expense.