'Hum aatmanirbhar hain': Amitabh Bachchan weighs in on Lakshadweep vs Maldives debate

Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan on Monday weighed into the ongoing Lakshadweep vs Maldives debate. Bachchan reposted former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag's take on the ongoing debate and said that he has been to Lakshadweep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. He added these are "such astonishingly beautiful locations" and that the underwater experience that these places provide is unparalleled.

"Viru paji ... this is so relevant and in the right spirit of our land ... our own are the very best ... I have been to Lakshadweep and Andamans and they are such astonishingly beautiful locations ... stunning waters beaches and the underwater experience is simply unbelievable ... Hum bharat hain, hum aatmanirbhar hain, hamari aatmanirbharta pe aanch mat daaliye. Jai Hind (sic)," Bachchan, who was last seen hosting the popular quiz show Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC), wrote in his post on X formerly Twitter.

Sehwag on Sunday shared pictures of Udupi, Paradise Beach and other Indian beaches and said that Bharat is known for converting all aapdas (obstacles) into avasars (opportunities). He further said that the dig at India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is an opportunity for the country to create the necessary infrastructure to attract more tourists and boost the economy.

"Whether it be the beautiful beaches of Udupi , Paradise Beach in Pondi, Neil and Havelock in Andaman, and many other beautiful beaches throughout our country, there are so many unexplored places in Bharat which have so much potential with some infrastructure support. Bharat is knowing for converting all Aapda into Avsar, and this dig at our country and our Prime Minister by Maldives ministers is a great Avsar for Bharat to create just the necessary infrastructure to make them attractive to tourists and boost our economy. Please do name your favourite unexplored beautiful places," the former Indian cricketer said on X.

Also Read: EaseMyTrip suspends all Maldives flight bookings, starts #ChaloLakshadweep campaign

Amitabh Bachchan and Virender Sehwag, however, were not the only ones to share their takes on the ongoing Lakshadweep vs Maldives controversy. Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, John Abraham, Shraddha Kapoor and Sachin Tendulkar also urged their followers to explore Indian islands and support domestic tourism.

Their reactions came after Maldivian ministers mocked Prime Minister Modi after he shared pictures from his recent visit to the Lakshadweep Islands that went viral within no time. In these pictures, the Prime Minister was seen going on early morning walks and trying out snorkelling. He also shared the pictures of the reefs and other forms of marine life captured during his snorkelling adventure.

Soon after PM Modi's post on his Lakshadweep trip, Lakshadweep Islands became the most searched keyword on Google in India on January 4 and 5. Not only this, worldwide search interest for Lakshadweep is also at its peak in the last 20 years by a huge margin.

Also Watch: Lakshadweep vs Maldives row: Top 5 things to do in India's pristine islands; PM Modi's pics irks Maldives

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