Mumbai: Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who regretted his daughter Alia Bhatt's participation in the Saifai fest, has been asked by superstar Salman Khan not to apologise on behalf of the young actress.
Salman led the Bollywood contingent which included Madhuri Dixit, Elli Avram and Zarine Khan at the Uttar Pradesh government organised cultural extravaganza.
The event attracted negative publicity with media and opposition parties accusing the state government of ignoring the sufferings of Muzaffarnagar riot victims and instead spending money on Bollywood stars.
Salman and Madhuri too faced flak for participating in the event, organised in the ancestral village of Samajwadi Party Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and the UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav recently.
"Bhatt saab no need for apology, Alia's upbringing is great, I was proud to share the stage with her. She earns her living with hardwork and dignity (sic)," tweeted Salman.
The 48-year-old star had defended his participation saying it was for charity and his organisation had already donated Rs 25 lakh to a hospital in the state.
Bhatt had expressed regret that despite being a politically aware person, he did not stop Alia from attending the event.
Alia's half-sister and Bhatt's elder daughter Pooja too defended her father saying it was a lesson for the young actress to be more careful in accepting such invitations in future. "Mahesh Bhatt you have not failed as a father. Alia needs representation that has a far more sensitised and astute worldview. End of story," Pooja posted on Twitter. "To my baby sister Alia all I would say is read the papers more and do not let managers and agents decide your future. Immediate or otherwise," the actress-turned-director added.
