Way women are treated currently is shameful: Kamal Haasan

It's not about actors becoming politicians, it's about concerned citizens getting involved, said Kamal Haasan.

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan has raised the issue of women security in Tamil Nadu saying, “the way women are treated here currently is shameful”. Speaking in Erode, the actor-politician also brushed aside allegations of being funded by Christian missionaries.

“They say I am funded by Christian missionaries and to that all I can do is laugh it off as it's false,” said Haasan, who recently launched his political party Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM).

He further said that it was “not about actors becoming politicians, it's about concerned citizens getting involved”, further raising the issue of women security saying “the way women are treated currently is shameful.”

Few days back, the superstar had noted that he was not for total liquor prohibition in the state. He had, instead, said that the need was to check the spread of liquor shops. "The question is whether the liquor shops should be spread out like this. We have to go in search of a post office but there is no need to search for a TASMAC (Tamil Nadu government liquor outlet). We have to change this situation," he had said.

Kamal's remarks came at a time when major opposition political parties in Tamil Nadu have been demanding implementation of a total ban on the sale of liquor in the state.

Kamal had expressed his thoughts in a column in the Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan. It is not possible to make an entire society to dislike liquor, the actor wrote in the Tamil magazine.

Kamal argued that total prohibition would result in the creation of a mafia which has been seen in the history of the world. He said liquor drinking is not like gambling that could be stopped suddenly.

Kamal said human body would not agree to stop consumption of liquor suddenly. He said liquor consumption could be reduced but whether it could be stopped totally is doubtful.