Celebs writing to PM to honour Kader Khan with Padma award

Veteran actor Kader Khan has been part of the film industry for over three decades now. He has written the dialogues for 108 projects and acted in around 400 movies.

Now, his friends and fraternity members want his contribution to cinema to be acknowledged. In fact, producer Fauzia Arshi will soon be sending a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting that the actor be given a Padma award.

“We have written a letter, and are currently in the process of getting it signed by fraternity members. Kader Khan sahab is one of the strongest pillars of Hindi cinema. I request the government of India to confer the Padma Shri on him, and request all his co-stars, including Amitabh Bachchan sahab, Salman Khan, Govinda and Anil Kapoor, to raise their voice [in support]. This gesture of ours will give him [a new lease of] life, as he is not keeping well and living a lonely existence,” says Arshi.

Kader Khan won’t be part of the promotional activities of his next owing to his ill health. (File)

Writer-director Rumi Jaffery, too, believes that the actor is a deserving candidate for the Padma Shri. “His contribution has been huge. Today, only someone with a political connection or with a personal lobby gets the award. However, he never attended parties, did PR or mixed with people beyond work,” says Rumi.

Film-maker David Dhawan and veteran actor Shakti Kapoor, too, have come forward in support of Khan, and want his contribution to cinema — both as a writer and an actor — to be acknowledged. Actor Om Puri, in fact, believes that “it’s not too late. He should be conferred one now”.

The sentiment is shared by actor Rishi Kapoor. “He should get one for his humongous contribution to writing and acting,” he says.