Published 18:49 IST, July 3rd 2020
Milind Soman discusses 'making India strong' with Sonam Wangchuk; answers unhappy netizen
Milind Soman discussed 'one of the ways' of making the country strong with Sonam Wangchuk amid the 'Boycott China' movement due to tensions at the border.
Often known as the person who inspired Aamir Khans’s 3 Idiots character, Sonam Wangchuk has been at the centre of the ‘Boycott China’ movement in recent weeks. The renowned scientist-turned-educational reformer’s impact could be understood from the manner in which numerous celebrities heeded his clarion call to boycott Chinese goods and services. One of them was Milind Soman whose decision to quit TikTok had made headlines, before the app itself was pulled down by the Indian government a few days ago.
Milind continued to raise his anti-China stance even after his decision to go off TikTok and this time took it further by interacting with the person who inspired him to go off TikTok. The actor-model discussed with Sonam Wangchuk the ‘Boycott Made in China' movement via a video call recently. Introducing the discussion on how the common citizens could participate in making the country stronger, he wrote how ‘one of the ways’ was the '#BoycottMadeinChina' movement.
Here’s the video
In the video, Milind is heard thanking Wangchuk for his initiative and asking him about the thought behind the decision. The latter shared that the recent tensions in Ladakh were not new, and had been going on for long, and China’s conduct was similar with countries like Vietnam. Wangchuk felt the battle against China could be fought by ‘citizens through their wallets’ as compared to ‘soldiers with bullets.’
He once again highlighted his idea on uninstalling Chinese software in a week and hardware in a year, calling the China-based games as ‘violent’ and apps like TikTok ‘wasteful’. Wangchuk also highlighted that it was important for the environment to not buy something because it is cheap, one of the reasons for Made in China products to flourish. He also suggested a simplistic way of living.
When Milind asked the reformer on the jobs for Indians that could be impacted due to impact of this movement on Chinese companies, the latter replied that many jobs were lost too when China-made products entered the market, and urged to focus on the jobs that can be created with local production and purchase. When Wangchuk asked Milind about about his decision to quit TikTok, the Bajirao Mastani star highlighted some of the benefits of the app. However, he shared that he was inspired to think of the country’s larger interest after seeing Wangchuk’s message and expressed confidence that India could make such apps, and that was important to make the ‘country strong.’
Meanwhile, a netizen expressed his unhappiness at the nation being 'dragged in the direction that the ruling party decides,' telling Milind that he had 'no idea what the nation stood for.' Milind responded that he hoped what each of us stood for is 'good for the country'.
After the tension at the border got escalated and led to the martyrdom of 20 Army personnel, even the traders body and film associations have supported the ‘Boycott China’ movement, with celebrities also being urged to refrain from promoting Chinese goods. The government’s decision to ban 59 apps that were prejudicial to the country's security was hailed by stars like Malaika Arora.
Updated 18:49 IST, July 3rd 2020