Prem Chopra, also one of the guests on Krushna Abhishek’s comedy show with Tannishtha Chatterjee, advises her to go easy on a joke
Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; September 30, 2016)

Two days after Tannishtha Chatterjee slammed Krushna Abhishek’s Comedy Nights Bachao for ‘roasting’ her for her skin colour in an open letter on Facebook, Prem Chopra, who was also one of the guests on the show, has expressed surprise at her sharp reaction.

Like Krushna, the veteran actor also feels that Tannishtha’s angry social media post is a publicity gimmick. “I do not know if Tannishtha has taken up a social cause to prove to the world that dark colour is not a negative thing. As an afterthought, some one must have told her to take advantage of the situation to garner publicity. One has to learn to laugh at oneself. Even Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan make jokes about themselves. There are people who make fun of others, but when it is done to them, they just cannot take it. That’s unfair,” he says.

Chopra says one should not get offended by comedy shows. “One should not complain about what was said or take it seriously as the show’s concept is to make you laugh. It is all in good faith. If you cannot take a joke, you should not go on such a show,” he adds.

He mentions that he too was the butt of several jokes on the show, but he took them in his stride and laughed along. “I do not have hair on my head and cover it (my scalp) with a cap. They told me to remove it and then they cracked some jokes on my baldness. At the same time, I cracked jokes at their expense as well. This show is not about laughing at people, but laughing with them,” he says.

Chopra will receive the Lifetime Achievement award at the  7th Jagran Film Festival tonight.