Telugu actor and Andhra Pradesh legislator Nandamuri Balakrishna is in the eye of a controversy yet again, this time for making an offensive remark while referring to a nurse. Balakrishna made the remark on his talk show Unstoppable which streams on the OTT platform Aha, in an episode featuring actor-politician Pawan Kalyan. Narrating an incident when he was injured in a bike accident, Balakrishna told Pawan Kalyan, “I was told not to reveal that it was an accident, and instead say that I slipped and fell. When they took me to hospital, that nurse, danemma (an abusive Telugu term that literally translates to ‘her mother’), she was very beautiful. She cleaned around my nose and asked me what happened. I said it was an accident, and she yelled at me to get out.”
The actor and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader seemed to imply with his tone and expressions that he forgot to lie about the accident as he was distracted by the nurse’s presence. Balakrishna’s words have evoked anger from nurses in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Balakrishna is also the managing trustee and chairman of Basavatarakam Indo American Cancer Hospital and Research Institute in Hyderabad, named after his mother. The controversial lines have since been deleted from the episode titled ‘Power Finale – Part 1’, the penultimate episode of the second season of the show.
However, as the video went viral on social media and was aired on mainstream media channels, with a few nurse associations condemning his remarks, Balakrishna issued a statement expressing regret. In a Facebook post, the actor said, “I strongly condemn the false propaganda that I have insulted nurses. My words have intentionally been distorted. I have immense respect for my sisters who lend their services to patients. I have seen it with my own eyes in the Basavatarakam Cancer Hospital. I have immense respect for my sisters who take care of patients day and night and save their lives. If my words have hurt your feelings, I convey my regrets.”
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