Actor Emraan Hashmi is back to the headlines for his upcoming web series Showtime, which revolves around issues of nepotism in the film industry. During a recent interview, Emraan got candid about the discussion around nepotism, first raised by his Gangster co-star Kangana Ranaut.
During the interview with Dainik Bhaskar, Emraan said that he found Kangana's statement surprising.
The 'Tum Mile' actor was quoted as saying, "I like Kangana a lot personally, as an artist. Maybe she might have had some bad experiences in the film industry. I have worked with her on Gangster. In that film, she had a more important lead role than me. That is why she got an exposure with that film."
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Further, he added, "So, I don’t think that only the ones favoured with nepotism get the chance. However, Kangana might have her own opinion, but putting the blame on the entire industry is wrong. There might be a few. Not all are drug addicts in the industry.”
Kangana made her debut in Gangster alongside Emraan. Later, the duo went on to work in multiple movies together including Raaz: The Mystery Continues, Once Upon A Time In Mumbai, and Ungli.
Notably, Kangana had called filmmaker Karan Johar the "flag-bearer of nepotism" during the chat show 'Koffee With Karan' in 2017. Since then, the actress has raised the issue and targeted Karan multiple times, especially after the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
On the work front, Emraan, who was last seen in Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif-starrer Tiger 3 as the antagonist, is awaiting the release of his new web series. Showtime also stars Mouni Roy, Naseeruddin Shah, Mahima Makwana, Rajeev Khandelwal, and Shriya Saran in pivotal roles. It will stream on Disney+ Hotstar from March 8. He will also be seen in Aye Watan Mere Watan alongside Sara Ali Khan.