Russell Peters’ comment on Aishwarya Rai irks female activists

The stand-up comedian Russell Peters has created quite a hullabaloo in India. His recent comment deriding Aishwarya Rai has not gone down well with the women’s rights activists, who have taken this matter rather seriously and are demanding an apology from him.

Russell Peters was in Mumbai to promote his film Speedy Singhs, which was co-produced by Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, and in one of his interviews he took a dig at the Bachchan bahu. Russell joked, “Aishwarya is the biggest example of bad acting. She has proved it time and time again that in Bollywood, people can become superstars just by having a pretty face.”

The comment, made in humour, has appalled the actress and her family, say sources. But Ash chose not to respond to Peter’s rant. But there are certain women’s right activists demanding an apology from him, reports a tabloid.

Shalini Thackeray, president of the MNS Cine-workers Union said, “He (Russell) has no right to talk badly about our actors. His comment on Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is indeed in bad taste and will not be forgotten.”

Some of the groups have apparently even written to Akshay Kumar, the co-producer of Speedy Singhs, to get an apology from Peters.

Meanwhile, the producer of Speedy Singhs, Ajay Virmani, has apologized for Russell’s comment on Ash. Ajay Virmani, father of Speedy Singhs actor Vinay Virmani, has high regards for the actress, whom he also hosted once in Toronto.