Bollywood criticises Janata Curfew celebrations on streets: it's worrisome, stupid

Several Bollywood stars including actor Sonam Kapoor, Richa Chadha, Nimrat Kaur have criticised the way people "celebrated" janata curfew on streets on Sunday, defying social distancing as advised by the central government during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Janata Curfew was an initiative by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which was meant to give a shout-out to people who have been providing medical and other essential services to fight the COVID-19 outbreak.

The prime minister had urged people to come out to their doorsteps or balconies to express gratitude to those who have been providing essential services during this crisis. However, soon social media was flooded with videos of people out on the streets, celebrating by banging plates, dancing, taking out rallies in huge numbers and even playing 'Corona Garba.'

Taking to Twitter, Nimrat criticised the manner in which people handled the situation.

"The attitude behind the circus that’s unfolded in so many parts of the country over 'celebrating' the end of #Covid19 is the exact reason why we should be so worried for India. Praying the price we pay for this utter embarrassment and horror isn’t irreversible and drastic," "The Lunchbox" star said.

Sharing a video of children dancing on the streets, Richa tweeted, "Stupid level max. This is the opposite of a #jantacurfew." Re-tweeting a thread of several videos of people celebrating on the streets, Sonam Kapoor said, "Sharing because it’s tragically hilarious."

A day after Janata Curfew, the prime minister on Monday appealed to state governments to ensure that rules and regulations of the coronavirus lockdown are enforced as he noted that many people are not taking the measure seriously. "Many people are still not taking the lockdown seriously. Please save yourself, save your family, follow the instructions seriously. I request state governments to ensure rules and laws are followed," he said in a tweet in Hindi.

Replying to PM's tweet, filmmaker Anubhav Sinha wrote, "Thank you sir. These people also need your scolding once.". Filmmaker Karan Johar also underlined the importance of social distancing, by tweeting, "Stay apart or fall apart! Your choice! #IndiaFightsCorona". Actor Kritika Kamra tweeted that one must strictly stay at home as there is "nothing to celebrate".

"Let’s make sure we don’t spread this to the elderly, vulnerable and underprivileged. And eventually, I really hope we come out of this as better people. We need to do better as a society. And vote for upliftment, inclusivity, equality," she tweeted. 

According to the Union Health Ministry, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country rose to 415 on Monday.