Veteran actress Soni Razdan, who is also Alia Bhatt's mother, has shared her thoughts on the ongoing India-Pakistan tensions. Taking to social media, Razdan urged Indian citizens to support peace amid the mounting hostilities between the two countries.
On Friday (May 9), she posted on her official Instagram account, amplifying a petition titled "India, Pakistan: Stop the Hostilities," which calls on both nations to halt aggression and seek a peaceful resolution.
In a brief caption, Soni Razdan wrote, "Above all – PEACE. Sign the petition. Link in bio." She shared the post with comments disabled, likely to maintain decorum and prevent inflammatory discussions on the sensitive topic.
However, the move sparked backlash online. Many netizens criticised Razdan for urging Indian citizens to sign a peace petition, arguing that India is combating terrorism and that such appeals are naïve or misinformed.
One Reddit user wrote, "Oh, I didn't know it takes a petition to make Pakistan stop attacking Indian civilians. Otherwise, we'd all have done this long ago. Why are our forces risking their lives? They should just sign her petition."
Another commented, "As if that's going to accomplish anything."
A user remarked, "The irony is they all have golden visas and would be the first to leave India if there's a war."
Another added, "It's really easy to speak on things that don't affect you."
One comment sarcastically stated, "Everybody's like – it's Alia's mother and Mahesh Bhatt ji's wife, so let's just stop the war."
As for the petition itself, it was initiated by Indian and Pakistani peace activists. The website states, "We, peace activists from India, Pakistan, and elsewhere, categorically condemn every form of violent extremism and terrorism. We particularly condemn the targeting of unarmed civilians for any reason, including as a means to achieve political ends."
It further adds, "India and Pakistan must behave responsibly. Any war between these two nuclear-armed nations would be disastrous. As history shows, it is ordinary citizens who suffer the most, especially women, children, minorities, the elderly, and other vulnerable communities forced to prove their patriotism. We therefore urge the people of India and Pakistan to hold their governments accountable and reject any speech or action that fuels war hysteria."
Meanwhile, not many know that Soni Razdan holds British citizenship.
