Nawazuddin Siddiqui says he’s a victim of caste bias, not accepted by some…

Nawazuddin Siddiqui | File Image

Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, said that even he has not been spared from being discriminated against in the state, despite his popularity in the world of cinema. In an interview with NDTV, the Sacred Games actor said that the caste system is deeply embedded in the villages of Uttar Pradesh that neighbours the national capital Delhi.

Nazazuddin revealed that in his own family, his grandmother was from a lower caste and thus, even today they have not been accepted.

The actor also condemned the Hathras incident in which a 19-year-old Dalit girl was gang-raped. The girl was hospitalised and died 15 days after the incident in a hospital in Delhi.

Nawazuddin termed the incident “very unfortunate”.

“What is wrong is wrong. Our artiste community is also speaking out against what happened in Hathras. It is very important to speak out. It is a very unfortunate incident,” the actor said.

The 46-year-old actor added that the fact he is famous does not matter to them. Stating that it is deeply entrenched within them, he added that the villagers consider it their pride.

“The Sheikh Siddiquis are the upper caste, and they will not have anything to do with those they consider beneath them. Even today it is there. It is very difficult,” he said.

Nawazuddin was last seen in Serious Men that premiered on Netflix on 2 October. The film, based on a novel by Manu Joseph, shows the journey of Siddiqui’s character. Perturbed his under-priviledged status, he capitalizes on his son’s fame as a boy-genius to improve his family’s fortunes.

The character soon finds out that the secret he harbours will destroy the very thing he loves the most.

The film is directed by Sudhir Mishra from a script by Bhavesh Mandalia. Aakshath Das, Shweta Basu Prasad, Nassar, and Indira Tiwari too play pivotal roles in the film.